Son of Chaos
by Skye Silverwing
Summary: A war threatens to destroy the future. It is up to the Time travelers from each side to prevent the events that will lead to the demise of a dynasty.
1. Chapter 1

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 1: The Crystal Tokyo Rebellion

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, and many of them are actually owned by richer people then me.

The Leader of the Crystal Tokyo Rebel Alliance, a young man with his long, black hair tied back in a loose ponytail stared through his high resolution imager across the bleak, frozen, landscape that surrounded the crystalline citadel they called The Crystal Tower and frowned. It was a terrifying and imposing structure a thousand feet high, so it towered over all of the rest of the so-called city, Home to the Despotic Queen herself, and forged of her own fell magic.

The young warrior looked back at the forces arrayed behind him. These were men and women who had stood with him from the beginning. They were all skilled warriors in their own right, his teachers and his family and his friends, following him with respect for his tactical mind and skills.

The three Eldest and most skilled of his allies, Happosai, Cologne, and Genma, were the Masters that taught him some of his most powerful techniques, and stood by his side as his most trusted advisors throughout his seventeen years of life. Also, his Aunts, who were almost like mothers to him, since the capture of his own mother, were trusted allies.

As the warrior studied the defenses of the target of the oncoming strike, the two most aged of his advisors approached him.

"So, my boy," Happosai asked, "how do you intend to proceed? It's not like the Sailor Senshi in there are just going to surrender, and, while we do have the superior force, doing this the wrong way is likely to result in a large number of deaths amongst the civilian population, as well as our own forces."

"Indeed." Cologne agreed, "As much as we wish to end the tyrannical reign of Queen Serenity and her Sailor Senshi, we must not forget that the citizens of Crystal Tokyo are merely victims in their thrall."

"I know. And we have to assume that those bitches would sooner destroy the city then see it fall to us." The young man replied, "That is why I waited for the strongest and most dangerous of the Senshi to be away on a diplomatic mission. That way, we will only need to deal with the Queen herself, King Endymion, the Princess, and Sailors Mars, Venus, Mercury, Jupiter, and, of Course, Pluto."

He stepped back over to the hastily erected planning table.

"That is all well and good, boy," Genma said, approaching, "but even the weakest of the Senshi are formidable warriors with powerful magic that would carve through out infantry in moments."

"Indeed, Oji-san." The younger man replied, "That is why we are not going after the Senshi with our infantry."

He indicated a map and beckoned all of his commanders closer.

"The Senshi expect that we will charge in through the city streets where their powers are strongest and their wards will keep us penned up and separated to be dealt with at their leisure, as a team." He said with a grin, "They are, of course, wrong. We will attack the Crystal Tower directly. Our hero units will engage the Senshi one-on-one in close quarters, where their ranged magic is useless. As we keep them from ganging up on us and our skill will be more then enough to overcome their magic."

He smiled triumphantly.

"We will defeat and capture the Senshi and our infantry will occupy the city." He looked around the table, "and get Mom back."

Several faces lit up and others nodded in agreement, but Genma was still somewhat skeptical.

"That plan does have some promise, but how do you intend to attack the Tower directly?" he asked.

"That depends," The boy said with a smirk, "Auntie Akane, how is your aim with that thing?"

All eyes turned to the short-haired woman, who hefted her large mallet.

"Only one way to find out." She said with a malicious grin.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Sailors Jupiter and Mars stood on a balcony high in the Crystal Tower and kept an eye on the enemy army that stood poised to attempt to invade Crystal Tokyo.

The sound of boots behind them caused them to turn and bow to the husband of their Queen, Endymion. The raven-haired man nodded in return, and the Senshi returned to studying the enemy.

"Have the rebels made a move yet?" he asked.

"No." Mars replied, "They seem to be waiting for something."

"Perhaps," Jupiter guessed, "they are reconsidering attacking us at all."

Endymion sighed.

"I doubt it." He said, "Rebel groups tend to need to be smashed in order to see that their pitiful force is nothing next to the might of Serenity's power."

Jupiter groaned.

"Rebel scum…" she muttered, "When will they realize that it will a lot easier if they would just give in and let the queen's magic wipe the evil out of them."

"Hey, wait," Mars said suddenly, "something is happening."

She indicated where a group of people that they had determined to be the leaders of the Rebel Army were assembling.

"What are they up to?" Jupiter asked, shading her eyes from the Sun, "Is that… A mallet?"

The pair of Senshi and the King watched in confusion as one of the leaders proceeded to swing the Mallet and send one of her compatriots flying.

Right at them.

"They are attacking the Tower!" Mars shouted, "Endymion: Secure the Queen! Jupiter: Call the others! I will hold them off! GO!"

With a crash, the first enemy arrived. As the dust cleared, a young man with black hair and a Yellow bandana and a patch over his left eye glared at the red clothed Senshi. Vaguely, she recalled being responsible for the damage to his eye, having mistaken him for a Youma a long time ago.

"Sailor Mars, Because of you, I have seen Hell! Prepare to die!" Ryoga said.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In less than three minutes, the mightiest warriors of the Rebellion had all reached the Crystal Tower. Several already had their assigned targets, but the Leader and his advisors went over it once more before they would split up to find their own targets.

"Uykou is dealing with Jupiter, Xian-pu has Venus, Ryoga is beating Mars down, and Moouse has Mercury." The charismatic man said, "That leaves the four of us with the Queen, the King, the Princess, and Pluto."

Happosai leapt up, grinning ear to ear.

"I will handle Pluto!" the old master said with a laugh, "I have this pair of her Underwear, and the chi I draw from them will protect me from her Time-altering magic!"

The young leader cocked his head and started to ask the question they all wanted to ask.

"How…?"

"1964. Wild party. Very complicated. Tell you about it later!" Came the response as the old man bounced off down the hall.

The boy shrugged and turned back to the other two.

"Cologne, you secure the Princess. Oji and I will handle the Queen and her consort."

The old woman nodded.

"Am I to render assistance to the others, should they need it, as well?"

He nodded.

"You do that, after all, how much trouble can one Princess be?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

The Sixteen-year-old pink-haired Princess of Crystal Tokyo, Usagi Small Lady "Chibi-Usa" Serenity, sat up and looked around curiously as the alarm started to sound. She blushed, thinking that it was somehow because she had not been paying attention to Sailor Pluto's lesson on Temporal Physics.

Pluto cursed and hurried to the intercom, pressing the button to talk to the security room. Venus was on duty at this time and should be able to explain the disruption in her student's studies; after all, any time-traveler needed to know the basics of Temporal Physics to properly manipulate space-time without endangering the timeline.

"Venus, what is going on?" Pluto asked, calm as usual.

"Pluto, we are under attack! The Rebels found a way to go over our defenses and attack the Tower Itself!" The blonde responded franticly, "Crazy martial artists have already engaged Mars, Mercury and Jupiter. Reports are coming in about… Huh?! WHO THE HELL ARE YOU?!?"

"Obsticles are for killing!" declared a new voice.

"CRESENT BEAM!" Venus called out her attack. "Pluto! We need you!"

This was followed by a crash and static, indicating that the intercom on Venus's side was gone.

Pluto pondered for a moment. The Time Gates had shown nothing of this attack. The only way that the Rebels could have hidden from her as if…

Pluto paled noticeably, and then cursed.

Princess Usagi looked at Pluto with concern.

"What are we going to do, Pluto?" She asked, "We have to help!"

Pluto looked at the girl and shook her head.

"No, Usa-chan, 'we' will do nothing of the sort." She said, a determined look on her face, "I am going to help. You are going to the Chamber of time and prepare to head for the past." Her tone left no room for argument.

"Dianna!" Pluto called to Usa's grey Mau advisor, who had been napping until the alarm sounded, "See that the Princess gets there safely. If I fail to arrive in five minutes, go back in time to save yourselves."

Pluto turned and ran out of the room, muttering curses that gave new meaning to the phrase "Swear like a Sailor".

If these martial artists could avoid her sight, that meant they must have some of her own energy and be using it to cloak themselves. She could only think of one martial artist that met that criteria and she did not want to subject the princess to HIM. Damn that blasted party and that little freak. She muttered another string of curses, followed by a name, dripping with more venom then any curse before.

"Happosai."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Dianna led her Princess quickly through the halls, deftly avoiding signs of battle with her finely-tuned senses. A brief glance out a window showed an army invading the city far below, unopposed, with the Senshi busy defending the Tower. The few guards tried to set up defensive lines, only to have them steamrolled by the brilliant tactics that had been attributed to the Rebel Captain known only as "Nabiki".

Dianna had heard much of these Rebels, rising against the Order of Crystal Tokyo, declaring it to be evil for using magic to eliminate all evil. Dianna did not follow their logic, but, apparently, many did.

She and the Princess only encountered the enemy once on the way to the Chamber of Time, but the strange, shriveled old man did not appear to be interested in fighting them. He seemed to here something, at which he giggle and said something that sounded like, "So she does remember me…" and bounded off.

Dianna feared for the Queen.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Queen Neo-Serenity, formerly known as Usagi Tsukino, glared defiantly at the two men that had just entered the Throne Room.

The first seemed to be a fat older man in a white martial arts gi. He kicked the door open, and seeing her husband standing between him and her. He smiled at the armor-clad man, as the younger man entered.

The Younger Man had Dark, flowing hair, that under other circumstances, she may have thought dashing, but no. This man intended to destroy all that she and her dear friends had worked for. She would not allow it.

"Who are you that dare to invade my home and attack my friends?" she demanded, exuding Royalty and defiance from every aspect of her being.

The Yong Man seemed to blur, and was suddenly mere inches from the shocked Monarch.

He grinned and responded in a manner that seemed second nature to him.

"I am Kunma Saotome, Son of Ranma Saotome. Sorry about this."


	2. Chapter 2

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 2: A Temporal Incident

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. If I did, I would be writing episode and movie scripts not fan fiction.

All over the Crystal Tower, the battle raged.

In the Security Room, the purple-haired Amazon, Xian-Pu slammed her Bon-Bori into the side of a blonde girl in an orange seifuku. The blonde recovered, lashing out with a chain made of magic hearts. Xian marveled at how terribly gaudy the attack looked, even as she caught the chain and used it to fling the surprised Senshi against the wall, knocking her out.

On the exterior balcony, Ryoga Hibiki kicked the black-haired Senshi solidly in the stomach, then grabbed her by her red fuku and pitched her through a wall deeper into the Tower. He did not pause, but he had to admire the girl's resilience as she pushed herself to her feet again and tried to use that fire attack again. He blurred again, extinguishing the flames by grabbing her by the neck and slamming her through three more walls. He vaguely wondered if he was enjoying himself to much. As his target started to rise again, the former Lost Boy smiled.

"Nah."

In the Hallway nearby, two more combatants were locked in frenzied battle, the girl Okonomiyaki chef, Ukyou Kuonji flung some of her battle Okonomiyaki at a Green-clad brunette. The strong willed Senshi struck the projectile from the air with a fist and launched another quick lightning bolt, which was diverted and dispersed again by the chef's thrown spatulas. Ukyou grinned at the girl as the girl noticed that she could no longer move her arm, it was glued to the ground by paste-like dough, released by the pastry as she struck it. Unable to dodge effectively, she soon found herself covered in it.

In the Library, the long-haired Amazon male, Mu-Tsu, faced off with a blue haired girl with like-colored attire. She had been trying to scan him and his allies to find a way to overcome their strength when he had entered and smashed her scanner thing to bits with a ball and chain. She was now manifesting a truly vicious battle aura and wielding a sword made out of ice.

The man was beginning to wonder if he had not bitten off more then he could chew when the diminutive Amazon Matriarch, Ku-Lon, suddenly pogoed through a window behind the girl and tapped the girl on the back of the head with her staff, extinguishing the girls aura and rendering her unconscious with a pressure point. She gave Mu-Tsu a disappointed look as she handed the unconscious Senshi over to him.

In another section of the Tower, the small, wrinkled old man, Happosai, bounded along, seeking the Senshi of time. He suddenly realized how close he was to the Dungeons. Realizing that a small detour was in order, he hopped to the doors, easily disabling the pair of guards and lifting the keys from their unconscious forms. Opening the door, he looked through the long row of cells. He was disgusted by what he saw.

Broken. All of those poor souls in the cells had been broken.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Several Floors away, in the Throne Room, the panda-cursed martial artist, Genma Saotome dodged the lightning-fast sword strikes of his black-haired opponent, and countered with some lightning-faster punches and kicks, quickly driving the prince-consort back against the steps leading up to the throne.

Genma had to admit, the boy was a surprisingly good martial artist, for a normal person. Against a high Ranked martial artist like Genma, however, this boy had nothing. Tired of toying with him, he blurred quickly and struck the boy hard in the back of the head, causing him to stumble forward, dropping his sword. A quick kick to the stomach and a back-hand to the back of the skull reduced the Prince Consort to a heap on the floor.

The Queen watched in horror as her love fell. Her eyes turned pleadingly to the man standing in front of her.

"Why are you doing this?" she cried, tears flowing down her cheeks, "Hurting people and making them suffer? It isn't right… Please, stop!"

Kunma Saotome glared at her.

"Isn't right, huh?" He challenged, "As 'not right' as taking away the choice of your subjects so they can't think for themselves?"

Neo Serenity returned the glare as she defended her way of ruling.

"I just made it so they can be good, by removing evil from them." She said.

"And who decides what is good?" he countered, "You?"

"Of course." She said with an arrogant smirk, "I am the Queen, after all."

Disgusted with the arrogance of this woman, Kunma drew back his fist, intending to knock this bitch down where she belonged.

"DEAD SCREAM"

Kunma barely dodged the attack as it shot through the space he had been in and exploded off to the side. He spun and surveyed the room quickly, seeing Sailor Pluto, the green-haired Senshi of Time, hovering near where he had been standing a moment before, between him and Serenity.

"So the old letch did not catch you yet, huh?" He said with a smirk, "Good. I was worried that I was not going to have any fun at all."

With that, he leapt into action firing off a combination of moves at speeds that would make lightning look like a snails pace in comparison. He was not surprised to see that none of his blows landed. She was the Senshi of Time, after all, and bending time to make herself move that fast was easily within her capability.

Kunma smiled as Pluto dodged a pair of vacuum blades that announced Genma joining the fray. This increased the chance of survival significantly. The two martial artists continued to dance around striking at the woman in the black and fusha fuku, distracting her somewhat from her magic. However, vacuum blades, ki blasts, lighning fast strikes, and even mini tornadoes failed to phase the Senshi. There was only one thing that could turn the battle in their favor.

"SWEETO!"

The diminutive Grand Master of Anything Goes leapt forward and latched on to the startled woman's chest, and as he did, her levitation gave out, causing her to tumble to the floor of the chamber.

"LET ME GO, YOU PERVERTED LITTLE BASTARD!" She shouted, ineffectively punching the miniscule old man and attempting to pry him off of her.

"I don't think so, Pluto, my dear," Happosai said with a lecherous giggle, "I can only negate your powers completely from here, and you are powerless to stop me." He gave her chest a solid honk to prove his point.

Pluto shrieked in outrage as the rest of the Sailor Senshi were brought in by their opponents, unconscious, disabled, or just beaten to the point where they could no longer move.

Kunma looked at the Queen and smirked.

"You see, the Senshi are captured, the Tower is ours, and the city will soon follow." He proclaimed, "The time of your Tyranny over this world has come to an end!"

Serenity's eyes moved from friend to friend, then settled back on the leader of the enemy with a grin of defiance on her face. "If you had captured them all, I would be worried."

A moment of panic struck all of the Rebels as they looked around at their captives. Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, Pluto, Endymion, the Queen…

"Ku-Lon! Where is the Princess?" Kunma asked urgently.

"I… I did not find her." The old woman replied, "I had to help Mu-Tsu."

Serenity met Pluto's gaze for a split second and the older woman nodded.

"MOON STARLIGHT FLASH!"

A bolt of energy launched from the Queen's outstretched hand, impacting the Old gnome and blasting him off of the Time Senshi's chest. Even as the Martial Artists turned to face the restored threat of Sailor Pluto, she leveled her staff and whispered the words.

"DEAD WHISPER!"

Instead of the expected ball of energy, the staff produced a bolt of energy that lanced around the room, not striking the fighters, as expected, but striking the downed Senshi, and the prince, healing, waking, and releasing them.

Leaping to the side of their Queen, the revitalized heroines stepped into a quick pose and cried out together:

"IN THE NAME OF THE MOON, WE SHALL PUNISH YOU!"

And the battle was joined.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Pluto dashed down the hall, having used the chaos of the battle to cover her quick exit. She knew that the others would not hold out long without her magic, but as long as that… creature… was around, her magic was useless anyway. She had a plan, though. With her powers weakened, she could not teleport yet, but she could tap the time gates from here. She just needed… there. Perfect… If the princess could prevent that event, none of this would happen. It would erase that boy from existence, and put everything right.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Kunma noticed Happosai get up and bound out of the room. He took a quick stock of the battle. Noticing that Sailor Mercury was already down, as well as Mu-Tsu on his side, (Mercury had screamed something about there being only one and attacked Mu-Tsu alone, soaking up all the damage it took to get there) Mars was being introduced to several walls by Ryoga, Shampoo and Ukyou were battling the team of Jupiter and Venus, Genma was dancing casually around the storm of roses conjured by Endymion, and Ku-Lon was engaging in a staring match with the Queen. Pluto was no where to be seen.

Kunma caught Genma's eye for a moment.

"I am going after Happosai and Pluto!" he told the older man, "Can you handle this fight?"

Genma chuckled.

"If I can't, I will need some Nannichuan," he called "'cause I will have become a weak little girl!" that earned him an off-handed over-the-shoulder-without-looking whack on the head from Ku-Lon's staff.

"Get going, boy!" she called to Kunma.

He rushed out the door and down the hall as quickly as possible hoping that he could stop whatever Pluto was planning.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

"No!" Dianna insisted, as she and the concerned Princess listened to the Sounds of battle echoing throughout the Tower, "Senshi Pluto said that you were to wait here, not go charging in to the battle with the rest of them."

"But Dianna, they might need my help!" The Pink-haired teen took a few more steps toward the door, only to have her way barred by the cat once again.

"I remind you that they are seasoned warriors, all of whom have defeated hundreds and even thousands of foes before." The Mau said, "If this foe can defeat them, I don't imagine you could do much better."

"But I can help!" insisted the youngest Senshi.

"No, you can't…" Pluto said as she hurried through the door, making the young Princess jump. "This battle is not one we can win. Not in this time, at least…"

The younger Senshi looked at Pluto in shock.

"You want me to go back into the past to stop them?" She asked.

"Yes." Pluto responded, "I need you to return to a time about two months after we defeated Galaxia. There is an event that we need to stop."

The Princess nodded. "When and where?" she asked.

"HOTCHA! I found you, Pluto-chan! And the Princess, too!" declared a new voice, causing Pluto to pale.

"Go!" she hissed. "To… Nerima!"

With that, the Princess was caught up in the rush of her time magic, flinging herself and her cat across space and time.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Kunma dashed into the room to find a frowning Happosai, sitting on top of a thoroughly beaten Sailor Pluto, who lay sprawled on the floor, groaning softly. The old Letch looked at him and nodded with determination.

"Kunma, my boy, it seems the Princess has gone into the past with the intent to erase your existence." He said, "She needs to be stopped." With that he produced a small, cracked hand mirror and tossed it over to the boy.

Seeing the mirror, Pluto gasped. "That's-" she was cut off by Happosai stomping on the back of her head, and driving her face into the ground.

"Shed a tear on its surface." The old man instructed.

Kunma looked at the mirror, and then the old man.

"You know Saotomes don't cry without reason." He said.

The old letch sighed.

"I did not want to tell you this," he said, "but on my way in, I found your mother in the Dungeon… We were too late."

Kunma's face contorted with rage and sorrow, the thought of his Mother's spirit being broken by the Senshi's foul magic being too much for him to bear. A single tear rolled down his cheek and fell onto the broken surface of the Nan-ban Mirror. The mirror glowed, generating a babble of energy that surrounded the young warrior.

"NOW, KUNMA," Shouted the master over the rush of energy. "IT IS UP TO YOU! STOP THE PRINCESS FROM ERASING YOU FROM HISTORY! PROTECT THE WORLD IN THE PAST, AND PREVENT THE SENSHI FROM CREATING CRYSTAL TOKYO IN THE FIRST PLACE! GO NOW!"

The young warrior nodded, and looked into the mirror as it whisked him away.

"NOOOOO!!!" Shouted Pluto, as the boy vanished.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Chibi-Usa and Dianna moved quickly through the Space between Time. The foggy, mysterious landscape seemed almost familiar to them, since they went through it so often.

Usa was determined to forge on, to complete her mission, but she suddenly got a bad feeling, like something dangerous was coming. She turned to see a speeding ball of energy heading straight for her, a few feet off the misty ground. She barely had time to scream as the ball hit her and pulled her inside.

Dianna tried to leap up, inside as well, but the ball streaked off into the fog, leaving the concerned moon cat behind.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In a remote mountainous region of China, there was a valley full of springs with bamboo poles sticking out of them. Near this area, there was a hut, wherein lived a man and his daughter. This man held such knowledge of the surrounding area that he had become known simply as "The Guide".

One night, the Guide stood with his daughter outside his hut, looking up at the shattered remains of the great mountain they called Jusendo. The Springs of Jusenkyo had not been the same since its destruction, a lot of magical curses changing slightly, forcing him to run tests to find out which springs had changed and how. He had actually found a few full of hot water that day that delivered an inverted form of the usual curse, and some with mixed water, both hot, and cold that seemed to draw a permanent change. As he considered the possible ramifications of this, his daughter touched his arm and pointed out over Jusenkyo.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

High in the air, over the Valley of the Cursed Springs, the air wavered slightly and then a bright ball of energy popped into existence. It hovered there for a few moments before finally vanishing, releasing its occupants to tumble down into the springs below.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Notes from the Author:

I always encourage my readers to make constructive criticism and give suggestions. Really. I want to know what you think and what you want to happen.


	3. Chapter 3

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 3: Unforeseen Consequences

Disclaimer: I don't own these characters. They belong to people with more money then me.

July 23, 2009 – Somewhere outside of normal Space-time.

Setsuna Meioh, the Guardian of Time stared at the Time Gates with a horrified frown. She had received a garbled message from her future self about an impending attack on Crystal Tokyo, and the possibility of sending the Princess back, but she had received no further information. She had then detected a Traveler incoming, and opened the gates, to let the Princess through, only to detect an odd surge and see the readings from the Princess vanish altogether.

This lead to one horrible conclusion: Whatever enemy had attacked Crystal Tokyo had followed the Princess into the Space between Time and had destroyed her.

Even as Setsuna tried to deal with her own feelings about what had happened, the gates detected a lesser traveler incoming. Guessing it was the Princess's attacker; Pluto readied her staff and willed the Gates to close.

As the Gates slammed shut, a small blur and a flurry of fur tumbled through it. Pluto barely bit off a Dead Scream as she recognized the frantic Mau advisor from the future.

Dianna sobbed, stuttering something about an army and a bunch of fighters, followed by a confirmation of Pluto's fears:

"THEY BLASTED THE PRINCESS IN THE TIME CORRIDOR!!" The gray Mau cried.

Pluto's heart sank. Tears came, and then resolve. She was going to find that bastard that killed Chibi-Usa and make him pay… But first, she had to break the news to the girl's parents and friends in this time.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 20, 2009 – The Cursed Springs of Jusenkyo.

Kunma caught sight of the poles sticking out of the water and knew the place from the tales his Mother had told him. Jusenkyo was exactly as he had pictured it.

Except that he was over it and falling towards it at a high rate of speed. With no poles near enough to grab to stop his fall, and a pool directly below him, he resigned himself to the fact that he was going to be cursed, and stay that way for the six months it would take before the magic was curable with the method Uncle Ryoga had discovered.

As the water closed over his head, Kunma noted the absence of hot or cold in it, cursing his luck for not getting a curse that would allow him to return to his birth form.

Vaguely, he noted a second splash, and realized that someone else must have fallen into a spring nearby. "A Martial Artists duty is to protect the weak." Kunma whispered as he began to move to help the other victim.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Hikawa Shrine, Juuban, Tokyo.

Usagi Tsukino cried, as her betrothed, Mamoru Chiba, cradled her gently in his arms. Setsuna's news had shattered the young future Queen to the core. She simply could not handle the thought that her daughter, her little girl, her sometimes "cousin", the only child that she would ever have in the future (Setsuna said so) was gone forever.

The other Senshi, while mindful of their princess's pain, Grieved in their own ways. Ami Mizuno used her Mercury Computer to scan for temporal occurrences over the past week. Rei Hino went and began a fire reading to find the identity of the killer. Makoto and Minako discussed the sketchy information on the matter with Setsuna, as well as how they were going to pound the killer until he was nothing but a smear on the ground. Haruka and Michiru tried to comfort their adopted daughter, Hotaru, who was teetering between depression at the loss of her best friend, and Planet-destroying rage towards her killer.

Luna and Artemis, the Mau advisors to Usagi and Minako respectively, talked quietly with their future daughter, Dianna. She was still a little shaken up, but she could speak in full sentences now.

"We were walking through the Time Corridor when I felt something behind us, and the Princess turned to look. It was a ball of energy of some kind and it hit her and kept going, and she was gone!" The cat, no longer a kitten, broke down and cried about how useless she was, having failed her charge in the worst way.

Pluto wondered what Chibi-Usa's mission could have been. Was she coming here to hide, or to change something that the future Pluto failed to get across? What exactly was her mission? And what could possibly be that important in Nerima?

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima.

It was a normal day for Ranma Saotome. He was woken up by a standard grab and throw out the window by his father, followed by a none-too-graceful splash in the Koi pond. Then a round of "Beat the Panda", followed by a trip to the furo to regain his manhood, and a quick and tasty breakfast, care of Kasumi, this followed by an argument with Akane Tendo and a trip via "Mallet Air" for "flirting with my sister". Then came the walk to school, and a cry of "RANMA! PREPARE TO DIE!" Announcing the beginning of a fight with Ryoga Hibiki, the eternally lost boy, this followed by a second trip on "Mallet Air" for "Picking on poor Ryoga", which made him late for his usual morning fight with the deranged kendoist, Tatewake Kuno.

Then it was time for school and getting drained by Ms. Hinako, the resident energy vampire teacher, because he was late, then a second period assembly in which Hawaiian hair-cut maniac, Principle Kuno, tried to cut his pigtail off. At lunch, Ukyou Kuonji, the ninja Okonomiyaki Chef, and Shampoo, the purple-haired Amazon, fought over who was going to feed him lunch, followed immediately by another trip on Akane's "Mallet Air" for "Ignoring the perfectly good lunch I made", (which was trying to crawl away) and which landed him in the middle of a pond in a nearby park.

On her return trip, Ranma-chan was accosted by Kodachi Kuno, the deranged Gymnast who accused her of "Stealing my Ranma-sama" and attacked. Then she encountered Tatewake Kuno again, who glomped her and declared his love for "My Pigtailed Goddess," before being kicked into Low Earth Orbit. Reclaiming his gender in the restroom, Ranma headed for his next class, only to be drained again for being tardy. Then Kuno Showed up during the class and challenged him and Ranma got to see someone else get drained and sent on "Mallet Air". Then came P.E. class, in which Ranma was attacked by a walking trashcan that was the disguise of the boy-dressed-as-a-girl, Tsubassa, who was quickly sent into L.E.O. by Ukyou's Combat spatula, followed by an argument of who got Ranma on their team that lasted until school was out.

Ranma vaulted over the school wall and hoped that would allow her to escape another encounter with a rival or… *ding-ding* "Ni-hao! Airen!" …a fiancée. He winced as Shampoo's bicycle tire caught him in the head. "Airen, you take Xian-pu on date now, yes?" The Amazon inquired, only to get hit by a big spatula with the declaration "No, he isn't. He is going on a date with me, right Ranchan?" Ukyou used her spatula to deflect a bonbori strike and countered with her shuriken spatulas. Ranma started to slink away while the two were distracted, only to round the corner to see Nabiki Tendo, Akane's sister, standing there with a hand out. Ranma dropped a 1000 yen bill in her hand so that she would not draw attention to his escape.

He managed to get half way home before a cry of "Bring back those Underwear, you PERVERT!" and his danger sense caused him to perform a quick back flip into a flying back kick, striking Happosai, the old letch, mid-jump and landing the both of them on two separate roofs. "Ah, Ranma my boy, just the person I was looking for." A quick battle ensued leaving Ranma irritated and female and Happosai in L.E.O.

Ranma-chan entered the Nekohatten to get some hot water and ignored Cologne's cackling giggle as Mousse attacked him for "Taking my Xian-pu!"

"Hard day, Son-in-Law?" the Amazon Matron asked as the fight wound down and the newly-feathered Amazon male was shut in his cage.

"Naw," He replied pouring the hot water she handed him over his head, "Pretty normal day."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 25, 2009 – Jusenkyo, China.

Usa groaned.

Her head throbbed and spun dizzyingly as she pulled herself back into consciousness. She could feel a rough cloth draped over her body and a lumpy mattress beneath her. She slowly cracked her eyes and regretted it, wincing as the light stabbed at her brain, redoubling the pain. Vaguely, she heard the soft murmur of voices in another room, and as the haze that inundated her mind began to lift, she realized that the words were not in a language she recognized. A sudden stab of fear entered into her heart as she realized that she had no idea where, or even when she was.

Her mind struggled to recall how she came to be in this dark room. She could recall walking through the misty Corridor between Time with Dianna by her side, on a mission to prevent… what? Her head throbbed as she tried to recall what Pluto had said… something about… Nerima? Where was that? She was confused. She tried to remember what happened in the Corridor. A ball of light… that's right… a ball of light hit her, then there was a vague impression of a person… then falling… and hot water.

As she attempted to recall more, the door to the room opened and a young girl entered, and, seeing that she was awake, called to the others in the strange language. At her summons, two more figures entered, the first being a man wearing some kind of green uniform, and the second being a smallish woman with red hair.

"W-where am I…" Usa asked, looking from person to person, hoping that at least one of them would understand Japanese.

The Man smiled.

"Miss Customer had us worried." He said.

"Indeed." Said the child, as she stepped up to the bedside, "I am Plum. That is my father, who they all call the Guide, and that woman is your savior, Kunma."

The woman bowed to the dizzy Princess, revealing a grace and fitness that would not have been out of place in the fitness and sports magazines the Senshi horded.

"I am Kunma Saotome." The woman said, "I pulled you out of the water you almost drowned in. Are you alright?"

Usa groaned again.

"Aside from the headache?" she said softly, trying not to make the throbbing in her head worse. "Yeah, I guess I am alright… Has anyone seen my cat?" She glanced around, hoping to see the grey Mau in the room.

"Cat?" A momentary look of uncertainty came over the woman's face.

"No," said Plum, "we found no cats… But we have more important things to discuss, Miss Customer." She stepped back and looked at her father.

Usa looked at the girl curiously.

"What's with this 'customer' stuff? My name is Usagi, though my friends call me Usa."

"OK," said Plum, "it's just that we usually call all of the people who get cursed by falling in the springs 'Customer'."

"Oh…" Usa said. "Wait… What do you mean, 'cursed'?"

The Guide stepped forward.

"This area called Jusenkyo, Springs of Sorrow. It have thousand of Springs, each with own tragic story. You fall in Tuzinichuan – Spring of Drowned Rabbit. Very tragic story of cute little bunny rabbit, fall in spring and drown. Now anyone fall in spring take form of rabbit." He said, giving Usa a moment to look around at herself in confusion before continuing. "Curse change recently, though. Was cold water, so cold water activate, hot water undo, but now, is hot water, so hot water activate, cold undo."

"What?" Usa asked, not following the Guide's broken Japanese.

Kunma stepped up, hoping to help her understand.

"You fell in the Hot Spring of the Drowned Rabbit." He said. "It cursed you so that you will turn into a rabbit when hit by hot water, and return to normal when hit with cold water."

"You're kidding, right?" Usa looked at them incredulously.

With no ceremony, the red-head produced a kettle of lightly steaming water and poured it over the surprised skeptic. The world seemed to slide, stretching and growing as her body shrank and her bones and organs rearranged themselves, and fur grew all over her body. Her senses became heightened and she could feel the strength in her legs and her teeth. The experience was terrifying.

Kunma then produced a canteen of cold water and poured its contents over the neo-bunny. As the fur dissolved and her form was restored, the Red-headed woman blushed and turned around to leave, dragging the Guide after her. She turned to Plum and said something in a language Usa did not understand.

"Plum, please get Usa dressed" Kunma said as she pulled the Guide from the room.

She was glad that Ku-Lon had taught her to speak Mandarin. After her own encounter with the now-permanent Nyannichuan, she had pulled herself out of the water to find the unconscious rabbit floating a spring nearby. She had carefully examined the rabbit's chi to determine its injuries, and then used a technique Doc Tofu had taught her. The rabbit's injuries, which had been life-threatening, had been healed to some extent, though the poor girl-turned-bunny remained unconscious. Kunma had been very glad to see the Guide and Plum coming to assist.

Sitting at the table in the other room, Kunma and the Guide discussed Kunma's plans, until Plum and Usa came out.

"Thank-you for granting us some privacy." Usa said. "But I don't know why you left, Kunma-san. I asked Plum about it and she giggled and said you would explain."

Kunma chuckled and looked at Plum, who giggled and blushed.

"I left because until a few days ago, I was a boy." She said. "Sadly the same time you fell in the Hot Spring of the Drowned Rabbit, I fell in the Permanent Spring of the Drowned Girl. You can guess at the tragic story there."

"So, you were a boy?" Usa said with wide eyes. "Wow… seems like you are taking it well enough."

"Well, I was raised on stories of Jusenkyo and one of my parents was a victim of that same pool, before it was permanent." She said. "I know of several ways to cure the curse, but the best ones need six months before they can work."

"What?" the Guide said in astonishment, "What cures?"

Kunma smiled.

"The most obvious cures are the spring of whatever the victim was before, though it is not advisable to try that, since curses usually leave something behind, so the small, black piglet becomes a small man with jet-black skin." She said, "Second is death. Quite possibly the reason that no one noticed the third: Water from an 'uncursed' spring will serve to 'wash' a six-month-old or more curse off. Only problem is that if you touch the water of one of those springs while it is still in the spring, the original curse of the springs will activate, and it does not matter who or what you are, you will drown."

The Guide looked shocked. He had never considered the possibility that pulling water from an uncursed spring might provide the cure that so many cursed individuals desired.

Kunma smiled.

"So tell us, Usa, what is a Japanese girl like you doing this deep in China?" he asked.

"I am not really sure…" Usa said, "I was on my way to visit my cousin with my cat when something hit me. Then I woke up here. What about you? You look as Japanese as anyone I have met."

"I was chasing one of the ones that hurt my mother." She said in a low voice. "That… Monster… teleported to escape me, but I followed and ended up here."

They were both silent for a while, until Kunma spoke up again.

"Well, it seems to me that your cousin might be worried about you, and I am concerned about another attack on my mom, so we both need to be heading back to Japan." She said, "As long as we are going in the same direction, why don't we travel together?"

"Really? That sounds like a great idea!" Usa replied, "When do we leave?" then she remembered certain time constraints. "How long will it take to get back to Tokyo? How long was I out, anyway? What is the date?"

"Hold on, Usa, slow down a bit." Kunma said. "You were only out for five days. The date is the 25th of June, 2009. If we take a detour to the Amazon Village of Juketsuzoku and get a decent tracker to lead us back to civilization, we should be back in Tokyo within a month."

Usa ran the numbers in her head. That meant that she overshot her time destination by one month, which, oddly enough, seemed to be exactly the time it would take to get to get back to Japan. With any luck Pluto would be able to tell her what she needed to prevent to save her home in the future.

"Ok." She said, "Let's go."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima

The nearby explosion hardly caused Ranma to bat an eye as he altered his course across the Neriman rooftops. This day had been just a little too normal, too routine. Something had to happen, and somehow, it had to be connected to him. Not surprisingly, he found his oafish, fool of a father at the center of it. The Panda-cursed martial artist was taking a beating in his uncursed form from an old man in the garb of a Shinto Priest and two women, one with regal bearing and Purple hair that would not have appeared out of place on an Amazon, and one with a Wild look and spiky light-blue hair.

"Give up, Saotome. You cannot deny that you are outmatched." Declared the priest, "You will pay dearly for what you did at the shrine those many years ago."

Nearby, a young man stood, glancing around nervously, with two more women, one being a little girl with light-blue pigtails and the other being a serious-looking woman with some kind of holographic computer that cast odd shadows off her spiky red hair. The young man seemed thoroughly concerned with the collateral damage caused by the energy blasts the spiky-blue-haired chick was throwing.

"Be careful, Ryoko," The boy called, "if you keep blowing things up, in this town, we are going to draw a lot of unwanted attention!"

"Relax, Tenchi," the red-head replied, tapping in some commands into her keyboard, "I am monitoring local police frequencies, but it seems that they are actually warning each other away, mentioning something called the 'Nerima Provision'."

Genma grinned at the momentary distraction of his opponents and faded from sight, in such a manner that only Ranma, having trained in the Umi Senken himself, could track.

"DAMN!" shouted the one called Ryoko, "Where did that Bastard go? Washu, can you get him on scanners?"

"No, he just… vanished." the red-head responded, "Aieka, how did he escape the field Hasaka and Kamidake were covering the area with? Don't they block teleports?"

"Indeed they do, Miss Washu," The purple-haired lady responded, examining a pair of what seemed to be logs of some kind, "But it does not seem that he built up enough power to penetrate the shield either. What do you think, Sasami?"

"It's like he is hiding!" the girl replied. "I think he is still here, just hiding so we cannot detect him, so we will think he escaped and let our guard down so he can get away."

"We cannot allow that." The old man said. "GENMA! WE KNOW YOU ARE STILL HERE! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE PUNISHMENT FOR YOUR CRIMES! IF YOU CONTINUE TO HIDE, WE WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING INSIDE THE FIELD!"

Ranma sighed. His Pops had really stepped in it this time. The old man's Umi Senken may have hidden him effectively from sight, but that energy barrier, if Ranma was reading the energy right, would flare a lot the moment he tried to pass through. Idiot or no, Ranma could not let his old man go down like that, so he stepped up to the edge of the roof he had been watching from and raised his voice.

"Don't bother. Pops is already gone." He called. "He has a technique that lets him move instantly and undetectably. You would be wasting your power."

The assembled characters turned and looked at the pigtailed boy.

"That's some technique." Washu said, dispelling her computer, and looking at him, "And who might you be?"

"Ranma Saotome." He replied, "So what, exactly, did my Pop do this time?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

For those of you who are wondering, the "Nerima Provision" is a local provision in the Tokyo legal code, allowing special considerations for the martial artists that live in the Nerima area. Drafted by Nabiki Tendo, funded by the Kuno family, and Supported by all of the Martial Artists in Nerima, it states that, in the case of a Martial Arts related Crime, Disaster, or force of pure destruction in the Nerima Ward, Police are to stand down and let the local Martial Artists handle it. In exchange, police do not interfere with battles between Martial Artists and said Martial Artists are not held responsible for any damage caused by their battles.

I figured there had to be some reason why the "Nerima Wrecking Crew" would not have been arrested, fined, sanctioned, or just gunned down by local authorities as a result of all the damage they cause on a daily basis.

There is a similar Provision in effect in Juuban, though it only applies to the appearances of Youma, Droids, Daemons and other such things and pretty much reads "get the civilians out, then let the Senshi handle it". It was drafted and funded by Setsuna Meioh and the Meioh Corporation.

I like constructive criticism and story ideas.


	4. Chapter 4

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 4: Warm Welcomes

Disclaimer: I don't own most of these characters.

July 26, 2009 – Somewhere Outside Normal Space Time.

Pluto was not happy.

The Loss of the Future Princess had been bad enough on all of the Senshi's morale, but now, as if subject to an inexplicable disease, the odds of Crystal Tokyo coming to pass were steadily declining, their hopes and dreams withering before her eyes. She watched as the chances lowered, reacting to the actions of someone or something that she could not detect, and, in a situation that she would ordinarily ask her Future Self for guidance, she found the Pluto of the future to be absent.

On top of all of this, her investigations into the only hint Dianna had been able to provide, for the purpose of Chibi-Usa's visit, the Nerima Ward, had resulted in even more frustrations. Even when viewed directly through the Gates of Time, the Events in the Present, Near Future, or Recent Past seemed blurred. As if there was some variable passing through that, if she were to go back and view events over, would react differently every time.

Even looking at Nerima gave the Mistress of Time a throbbing headache, and something about the energy of the variable reminded her of one of the times she had had too much Bourbon at a party several Decades before her work became so high maintenance. Suddenly it came to her:

Nerima; Martial Artists; Wild Parties; Energy she could not follow.

It was **Him**.

As she teleported back to the house she shared with the other Outers, Pluto cursed the day that she met the Panty-thief known as Happosai.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 25-26, 2009 – A Small Camp Near Juketsuzoku.

Kunma and Usa sat across the fire from one another and waited for the Pheasant Kunma had caught and cleaned to cook. Of course, it had been a pig until she had caught it, but this close to Jusenkyo that kind of thing happens a lot.

Kunma looked across the small fire and regarded the girl before her. Her long, pink hair tied up in two pigtails, nearly the same style that she had seen often amongst the people of Crystal Tokyo, and her luminous blue eyes indicating an impressive amount of wisdom for her age.

She did not doubt the girl's story. The clothing she had pulled from the Rabbit Spring with her had been what a young girl in this time would have worn on a daily outing, not those of a martial artist or traveler, which reinforced her claims to have been spirited away by some unknown force. This was also true for her near-total lack of survival training.

Kunma was glad for his own survival training, taught to him by his mother before she would allow him to follow uncle Ryoga to learn his style. A quick burst of Chi to start the fire, and some speed and energy attacks to catch dinner and it made up for the fact that the girl he traveled with could do nothing but find sticks, most of which were not fit for a normal campfire.

Usa looked back at Kunma across the fire, almost afraid to move. She was shocked at the feats of skill, strength, and speed, that she had seen the lithe, beautiful youth in front of her perform in the last hour. Never had she seen such power, grace, and speed in one person, outside the senshi, of course. Kunma had explained some elements of her martial arts skills to her, but the idea that such things were possible without magic made the young princess's head spin.

In the last hour alone, Kunma had knocked down a small tree to serve as part of their shelter, chased down a pig that became a bird when she killed it, and lit a fire with a blast of energy from her hand. Usa was beginning to get concerned that her new friend might be more then she appeared.

Noting the younger girl's apprehension, Kunma smiled reassuringly at her.

"You must think I am some sort of monster or freak, but this energy exists within all living things. It is called 'chi'." She said, "Even you. Here, I will show you."

The Red-haired girl produced a small crystal sphere and focused a small amount of chi in its depths, causing a small flicker of beautiful golden light to appear, as she slowly handed it over to Usa, who was now focusing all of her attention on the point of shimmering light in the middle of the sphere. As she let go of the ball, she released her chi, and the light began to fade. Naturally, Usa, marveling at how pretty the little light was, desired it to continue, and subconsciously reached out with her own chi to keep it alive. The light's color shifted to a soft pink

"There." Kunma said, "Your energy is maintaining that light now."

Usa looked up at the girl in surprise, dropping the gem on the ground and causing its light to flicker out. She looked down at the now darkened ball and picked it up again, searching it for the light it held before. She looked back at Kunma in confusion when it did not return.

"If my energy made that light, why does it not come back?" she asked, still not certain that it had been her maintaining the light.

Kunma smiled at the girl, recalling asking that same question of her mother back when he was a boy, and she had first begun to teach him about chi.

"The problem is that now, you lack focus." She repeated her mother's words, "Your chi is spread over too much space. Before, you had my chi to serve as a point of focus, allowing you to focus your chi where it was."

The Pink-haired girl nodded, beginning to understand what she was saying.

"So, I am spreading my energy out too much?" she asked.

Kunma nodded, impressed by how perceptive the younger girl was.

Usa looked from the ball to Kunma again.

"And that same focus can let me use chi for other things, like knocking down trees and starting fires?" She asked.

"Yes." Kunma replied, "With some training."

Usa got a rather determined look on her face. "Could you train me?"

Kunma smiled. "If you wish."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2008 – Nerima

Ranma Saotome sat atop a building, looking down upon the assembled people below him.

A woman with spiky red hair re-summoned a translucent computer screen and began to key in commands, glancing between it and the pigtailed boy in front of her.

"Ranma Saotome, eh?" she said with a note of interest, "Lets see what the scanners have to say about you."

The elderly priest leapt up onto the building, facing the boy.

"So, you are the Son of Genma Saotome?" He said, holding his sword out in front of him. "That puts your trustworthiness in question. I doubt a dishonorable coward like Genma Saotome could raise a child with anything resembling honor. Aieka, keep that shield up!"

Ranma sighed. "Listen, I am as happy as anyone to see the old man get what's coming to him, but I don't see the point in you guys blowing up a chunk of Nerima trying to get him." He looked at the priest seriously. "Especially since you have not told me what he did, yet."

The old monk looked the young martial artist up and down and nodded.

"It all started 18 years ago." He began, shifting into the deep tone that old men are wont to use when telling a long story from their past.

"Shortly after the marriage of my daughter, Kiyone, to her husband, Tenchi here's father, Nobuyuki. They were living far from the Masaki Shrine and, since my wife had passed on, I was tending the Shrine on my own. I noticed an approaching pillar of smoke, and feared for the people on the road, so I went down to investigate."

"What I found was one of the most vile and terrible individuals I have ever had the misfortune of encountering. He was some kind of small demon, a shriveled little gnome-beast, feeding off the chi stolen from women while he groped them mercilessly. He traveled with two weak minded fools in his thrall. Being a powerful priest, it was my duty to defeat the evil creature and bring peace back to the land."

"It was a long, hard fought battle, and I had to use all of the skills at my disposal, but after several hours of fighting, I managed to launch an energy blast that sent that horrible creature back to the depths of whatever Hell must have spawned it."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

On the other side of Nerima, Happosai was suddenly caught by a pair of violent sneezes, causing him to miss his jump. Instead of landing on the roof like he intended, he barreled straight into the wall of the building, then dropped three stories to land at the feet of the perpetual mob of angry women that were chasing him.

He cursed pitiably as they proceeded to stomp him into the ground.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

As she reappeared in her room, Pluto suddenly felt a little better, but did not know why.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

The old priest paused. He suddenly felt a resurgence of pride as if he had somehow defeated that foul creature again. He smiled to himself as he continued his tale.

"I turned my attention on the two slaves, but one of them only screamed that he was free at last and fled off into the woods laughing with glee and some degree of madness. The other thanked me very deeply, introducing himself as Genma Saotome. He asked much of my fighting style and requested to come to the shrine and study under me. He even offered to wed his first born son to one of my lineage as a manner of thanks."

Ranma cringed, glancing around at the women that the old priest had with him, causing the old man to laugh.

"Don't worry, boy." He said, "None of these are mine, and I turned your father down on the offer, anyway. I would not put any woman of my family through having to marry someone they did not love." Seeing the relieved look on Ranma's face, he smiled, and then continued his story once more.

"I offered Genma to spend the night and told him we could discuss it in the morning, as late as it was at the time, only to awaken the following morning to find Genma gone, and several scrolls and a holy artifact, the Chalice of Jurai, had been stolen. It was not until recently that we learned that he had also kept into the crypt of the Ancient Demon Ryoko and stolen three of the six gems from the hilt of the Legendary Tenchi Sword, which sealed Ryoko's power."

Ranma muttered about his stupid thieving father, and then sighed.

"So you are saying my Pops released a Demon?" If that was it, he could just defeat the demon and seal it away again.

"Oh, no. Tenchi did that." The Priest said with a chuckle. "And a mighty lovely demon she turned out to be, eh, Ryoko?"

"You got that right!" said the spiky blue-haired girl, as she drifted over and looked the pigtailed youth over, "You know, Katsuhito, if this brat is Genma's kid, maybe we can just grab him and use him as bait for the older one."

Ranma smirked at the woman, expecting this to serve as entertainment for the evening.

"You are welcome to try."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 26, 2009 – The Amazon Village of Juketsuzoku

The guards at the walls saw it first.

The reports of a red-haired girl approaching the village matching the description of the God Slayer himself, Ranma Saotome, in female form, had been circulating since late evening when a patrol had sited her camp and sent back word.

That she seemed to be traveling with a Pink-haired Japanese girl instead of Elder Ku-Lon or her Granddaughter, Xian-Pu, seemed to indicate that something was wrong. After the incident with Sa-Fron, Ku-Lon and Xian-Pu had been dispatched to ensure the tribes continued safety by either adding Saotome to the tribe or getting him as an Ally. Failing that, they were to destroy the God Slayer, rather then give the Jusenkyo cursed male the chance to join with their enemies for the destruction of the Amazons.

Elder Si-Za was concerned. It seemed that Ku-Lon had failed, and, for whatever reason, the God Slayer had returned, to destroy them all to prove his dominance.

"Ku-Lon was a fool to think that she could prevent the God Slayer from returning to destroy us, the only threat to his total dominance!" She declared, triggering cries of defiance amongst the Amazons. "We shall not allow him to succeed! Amazons! To War!"

The Elders moved quickly to line the Walls as soon as the guards reported that the Red-haired girl had been sited. They determined that if they could eliminate the youth with chi blasts, it would minimize the damage to the village.

As soon as the Girl was in the open area that stood before the gate, the Amazons opened fire, launching a wave of chi blasts at her and her surprised companion.

Seeing the incoming blasts, the Red-haired girl placed herself between her companion and impending destruction. The Pink-haired girl gave a startled exclamation as she was drawn behind the girl and the blasts of energy exploded.

The Elders breathed a sigh of relief as the Explosion blotted out their vision of the two, thinking them destroyed. All were then shocked at a surprised yelp that came from one of the sharper eyed Amazons on the wall.

As the smoke began to clear, three glowing blades of energy became visible, two blue, and one red. None of the Amazons had seen anything like it before; it was like the girl was emitting some sort of defensive energy wings.

The Wings of the Light Hawk.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima.

Washu read the holo-screen with mounting interest, glancing often at the target of her scans. She turned to the young girl next to her.

"Sasami, is Tsunami detecting the same thing I am from this boy?" she asked.

Sasami looked at the older woman and nodded. "Yes, but she does not know how."

Above, Ryoko began with her usual "fly, teleport, and blast" tactics, while Ranma resorted to dodging and avoiding damage.

"Stand still, you annoying brat!" Ryoko shouted at the boy as he hopped from roof to roof dodging her attacks.

Ranma quickly realized that this tactic was getting him nowhere. He needed to get the blue-haired girl to stop firing long enough for him to launch a counter attack. Getting an idea, he leapt to a specific spot, leading the Space Pirate's next shot to a different target.

"Ouch!" Aieka cried, barely avoiding taking the brunt of Ryoko's blast. "Ryoko! You are supposed to be blasting HIM, not ME!"

Ryoko laughed. "Sorry, Princess! You know what they say, 'All's fair in love and-' Oof!"

The last being said as Ryoko realized that Ranma had capitalized on her distraction, taking the initiative to leap up and drive a fist into her stomach. Hard.

The blue haired demon cursed as the pigtailed martial artist whirled in mid air and delivered an axe-kick to the back of her head that re-introduced her to the ground at high velocity.

Ranma was not finished yet, though. He puffed out his chest and drew on his confident chi. "Moko Takabisha!" He shouted, launching his signature energy blast down at the Pirate before she could clear her head enough to teleport.

The blast left the wounded Ryoko lying in the center of a large crater, groaning and babbling about the stars dancing before her eyes.

Ranma landed and smiled at Katsuhito.

"So, anyway…" he said, "I guess my Pop stole some important stuff from you guys and you want it back, right?"

The old man nodded. "The gems were what allowed us to track him here, they are artifacts in themselves and need to be recovered." He said, "The Chalice is an item of… historical value. It is a symbol of marriage for my people."

Ranma almost laughed. "And what Planet would that be from?"

Katsuhito, Tenchi, and Aieka gaped in surprise that the boy had guessed that they were not, in fact, from this world. Washu and Sasami looked at him a bit impressed, while Ryoko groaned from her hole.

"What?" Ranma asked, looking at the old man. "You weren't actually expecting me to believe you were from here, did you? I mean, miss blue there was flinging bolts of non-chi energy at me and hovering in mid air. Not exactly something a human can do without a huge expense of chi. There is also the red-head with her way-advanced computer. I may not be the most computer literate person in the world, but even I know that technology is too advanced to be from here. The Energy field that the Lady over there is maintaining and that energy sword you were using against my pops give you away even more."

Katsuhito gaped at him.

Ranma would normally have dismissed it all as Magic or an unknown form of the art, but he had also spotted the weird ship hiding in the clouds. Not that he was going to mention it to them, of course. Let them think they have an ace in the hole.

"In any case," Ranma said, "since Pop is gone, we won't be able to ask him what he did with them. However," he grinned, "I know someone else here who might know."

With that, the pig-tailed martial artist delivered a swift kick to a nearby bucket of water, probably abandoned by some window washers when the fighting began, sending it flying through the air, to land inside the shield behind a pile of rubble with a splash, followed by a somewhat irritated "Growf!"

"Is that… a Panda?" Aieka asked in confusion, letting her shield go.

"Just a plain ordinary Panda" the Panda held up his sign.

"More importantly," Tenchi said, even more confused, "did that Panda just use a sign to talk?"

"Yup," Ranma replied, "this is Mr. Panda, the unofficial mascot of the Saotome clan. Almost like one of the family, he is." He smirked at his father's cursed form. "Now, 'Mr. Panda,' do you know what happened to those items? I hope so, because I would hate to have to give these nice people a Panda skinned rug as a consolation prize."

The Panda flinched, realizing that he was stuck, gave in.

"He gave them to your mother" *flip* "as a wedding present." announced the sign.

"Wow," said Sasami, with childish delight, "What a well trained Panda!"

"You can play with him if you want," Ranma told the young Princess, and smirked at his Pops, "He WILL do as you ask if possible, while I give my mother a call."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 26, 2009 – Juketsuzoku.

The battle was joined.

From the safety behind Kunma's light-hawk wings, Kunma and Usa weathered the rain of chi blasts easily.

"I was afraid this might happen." Kunma growled as the first wave of blasts started to let up, "See how they handle this!"

The blades of energy before her began to spin, like a Propeller, speeding up until they blurred together, and suddenly began unleashing Gatling bursts of energy that struck the wall below the Amazon Elders in an explosive stream, sending the Elders and Amazons that had been on the walls diving for cover as the walls were reduced to rubble.

Not surprisingly, the younger, non-chi-adept generation took this as their cue to charge forward en-masse, intending to overwhelm the two girls with shear numbers, equipped with bon-bori, swords, nunchaku, staves, cookware, and anything else you could think to use as a weapon.

Kunma sighed and brought her light-hawk wings to a halt, holding out her hands and transforming the blue wings into Juraiian armor and letting the red wing drift up, until she reached out and transformed it into a blood-red sword.

"So you would dare to rise up and attack the travelers approaching your village with a force that would destroy innocents in your path?" She demanded, "I shall not allow it to continue! Now, cretins! You face ME!"

As the words slipped from her mouth Kunma nearly blanched at how stupid the whole speech sounded, but she could not stop from saying it. Instead of dwelling on it, she lunged forward, coating her blade in a layer of chi so that it would not prove fatal to her opponents, after all, these were supposed to be her allies, after all the confusion was cleared up.

Dancing her way through the mass of Amazons with a practiced style and grace that left those that were not felled by her sword in awe of her prowess, she made her way through to the line of elders, who had built a second line to resist her. Facing them, She decided to unleash an attack derived from their own special techniques.

Hiryu-Amaguriken: Strike of the Thousand Winds!

Gathering hot chi in each palm and cold chi on the tip of each thumb, Kunma created conditions for a punch that would generate a mini-tornado. That alone would have impressed the Amazons. That she proceeded to throw the tornado-bearing punches at Amaguriken speeds to strike them all from several angles at once, well it was overkill.

One of the Elders struggled into push herself off the ground and look up at her speaking in Mandarin.

"You may have bested us, GodSlayer, but at what cost?" She cackled, gesturing toward the pink haired girl Kunma had left on the other side of the battlefield.

Several Amazons that had avoided the ponytailed warrior's strikes now had the bunny-teen captive, threatening her with blades if Kunma even stepped toward them.

"Let her go!" Kunma shouted.

The Amazons tightened their grips on their weapons; they had seen how fast the girl could move. She could be upon them in seconds, but that would not be fast enough, and there was no way she could increase her speed further, right?

"I… SAID… LET… HER… GO!" With each word, Kunma flared her Aura bigger and brighter until, on the final word, her body burst forth with a bright golden corona, causing her hair to blow straight up and shift in color from its dark red to a fiery reddish gold.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Will Kunma be able to rescue Usa from her Amazon captors? How do the Juraiians' missing artifacts factor into Kunma's life? What is the secret of Kunma's lineage? Find out in the next Exciting episode of Son of Chaos!

As always, I love constructive criticism.


	5. Chapter 5

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 5: Revelations

Disclaimer: If I owned any of this, you would not be reading it for free.

June 26, 2009 – Juketsuzoku.

The young Amazons fled in terror.

"Aiya! She is a Super Saiyan!" one cried, "Flee or she shall destroy us all!"

In their flight, the Female warriors disregarded their captive to flee from the golden apparition standing on the other side of the field with a rather bemused look on her face. They all recognized it. The golden aura, the hair standing straight up, and the golden hair could only mean one thing. Super Saiyans were real. Just like in the TV show.

Usa, not seeing any other course of action, stumbled toward the brightly glowing figure, who, for all her evident power, looked like she was fighting the urge to laugh. Confused, Usa looked at her traveling companion with a questioning look in her eyes.

That was it. Unable to hold it in any longer, Kunma burst out laughing. Her aura snuffed out like a candle as she doubled over, giggling, chortling and laughing out loud. "I can't… believe… they fell for it!" She gasped out between breaths.

Suddenly realizing the nature of the bluff, Usa started to giggle herself. "Personally," she remarked, "I'm kind of surprised they got the reference." She glanced at the elderly woman questioningly.

Si-Za palmed her face in shame. "That's it." She said in broken Japanese, "Is last time young Amazons are allowed to watch Japanese TV shows."

Kunma fell over from laughter.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Saotome Household

The doorbell rang.

Nodoka Saotome smiled happily. "Oh good," she said to no one in particular, "That must be Ranma and his new friends now." She was very happy with her son. It is so manly to solve problem like this diplomatically, especially when fists could make such a mess of things.

She opened the door and there, as expected, were her son and his father (in Panda form) and several individuals she had never seen before. She greeted them and invited them inside. She bowed deeply to the priest, nodded to the young man, and greeted each of the young women, eyeing them appraisingly to see if any of them were sufficiently woman enough for her to set Ranma up with. After all, more fiancées equals more grandbabies, right?

Aieka smiled at the traditional-looking Japanese woman's bow and bowed in return with a soft "Hello."

Ryoko looked at Nodoka and grinned, "Hey."

Washu paid the woman no attention; she was too busy glancing quickly back and forth between the readings on her computer screen and the pigtailed martial artist.

Little Sasami answered the bow with a curtsy. "Hello!" She said brightly, "I am Sasami. It is nice to meet you, Lady Nodoka."

"And you as well, Sasami dear." The pleased older woman responded, "Would you all come this way, please?" She lead them into her family room, where the gifts that Genma had given her eighteen years earlier, as wedding gifts. "I suppose I should have guessed that they were stolen, given the nature of my husband… and the expense they represented."

"That is quite alright, Lady Nodoka." Katsuhito said, "I must say I am relieved to find them all in one place. I am glad that Genma's dishonorable nature did not carry over to his wife, or son. As it was, I feared we would be searching all over Japan searching to find them all."

Ranma sighed with relief. He could sense great power in the old priest, considerably greater then that of Saffron, and did not relish the idea of fighting him, especially with the others backing him up. He was glad this could be resolved without having to fight anyone other then that Ryoko girl.

Washu suddenly dismissed her computer and looked at Nodoka. "Pardon me, Mrs. Saotome." She asked, "But by any chance, did you ever drink from that chalice, or wear the gems?"

Nodoka cocked her head curiously at the question. "Why, yes, I drank from the chalice the night before Ranma was conceived." She answered, "Also at several points during the pregnancy, I also wore the gems during that time. Why? Are they dangerous?"

Washu glanced at Katsuhito, who shook his head slightly. "No," Washu responded, "just confirming these readings. Ranma, we will need to talk to you for a few minutes privately."

They quickly said their farewells and filed out the door, leaving Nodoka and the Panda in the house alone.

The dutiful wife quickly produced a tea kettle and restored her husband to his human form. "Well, I must say, they were certainly a lovely bunch of people. Especially that little girl, Sasami. I think when she gets a little older, if Ranma hasn't chosen a bride, we should talk to her sister about setting them up."

"But-But dear," Genma sputtered, "the schools…"

"Don't you 'but dear' me, Genma Saotome!" Nodoka barked in a disapproving tone, "It is YOUR fault they had to come! This is your mess and our son had to clean it up. You have damaged the family honor far enough as it is, so you had best be quiet, lest I decide that Ranma became a man among men WITHOUT your assistance!"

"Yes, dear…" The cowed Dark Horse said, sitting down.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 26, 2009 – Juketsuzoku

The once-proud Amazons of Juketsuzoku were beaten, scattered over the battlefield, unconscious or fleeing.

Only the Matron stood, and she gazed at their destroyer with a challenging glare. "Well, Godslayer, you have defeated us completely." She said, "Will you now finish the job?"

Kunma chuckled. "It would seem, honored Elder," She said in Mandarin, "that you have me convinced with someone else, and even your knowledge of that one is not very complete."

Si-Za's eyes widened in surprise. "You are not the Godslayer?" She asked, "You look just like his Female form!"

Kunma grinned at the old woman. "Of course I look like the Godslayer." She said, "She is my mother."

Si-Za looked at the girl in confusion. "Impossible!" she declared, "You are at least the same age as the Godslayer! There is no way that he… she could have given birth to you!"

"She could," he replied, "if I was from the future." She reached into her pack and produced the Nanban Mirror and showed it to the old woman.

Si-Za flinched in shock. "Come into my hut." she said softly, "We have much to discuss."

Usa stayed silent throughout the exchange, not understanding what they were saying.

"Usa, you stay here, while I talk with the Elder about the misunderstanding." She said, "Elder, I would appreciate it if no harm came to my companion."

"Of course" The old woman replied, then raised her voice, "Rei-Za, come here!"

A teenaged Amazon appeared to melt out of the shadows nearby. "Yes Great-Grandmother?" she said softly with much deference.

"See to it that nothing befalls this girl." Si-Za said. "She does not speak Mandarin, so use Japanese to speak to her."

Rei-Za nodded. "Yes, Great-Grandmother." switching to Japanese, she addressed her new charge, "Hello, I am Rei-Za. Grandmother says I need keep eye on you. You want help tend wounded?"

Usa looked at the girl whose long, neon-orange hair stood in some contrast to her piercing blue eyes. "Umm… sure… Razor." She responded.

The Amazons both sighed and Kunma chuckled.

Rei-Za then smiled at the girl. "Name is Rei-Za, but Razor is ok." She said, "I just thankful my name not Toi-Let." Both girls giggled at the thought.

Kunma and the Elder smiled and turned to enter the hut.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 years in the Future – The Crystal Tower, Crystal Tokyo.

Ranma Saotome calmly walked into the thrown room. Her red pigtail swayed behind her as she moved. Her shield sisters, Ukyo Kuonji and the Shampoo, walked on either side of her. Ahead, Genma, Cologne, and Happosai stood around a map of Crystal Tokyo, the last holding a leash that connected to a Green haired woman. Nabiki Tendo shifted several sets of figures on the map, representing the rebel troops and Defense forces that had been battling for the city for the last week.

"As you can see, our forces have the remnants of the Crystal Defense Force bottled up here, here and here, but it seems that they are somewhat better trained then we thought." Nabiki was saying, "It is becoming increasingly difficult for our men to tighten the noose without breaking the Non-lethality rule the General set down. On top of everything else, we are starting to get reports of Pro-Senshi Insurgent groups cropping up in the secure sections of the city."

Akane, who had been working on a kata off to one side, was the first to notice the pigtailed martial artist's entrance. "Ranma!" she hurried to her, wrapping her arms around her in a warm, though chaste, embrace. Then, as with the other two, she fell in behind the red haired girl.

Nabiki smiled. "It is good to see you Saotome."

Genma grinned. "Welcome back to the world of the living."

Cologne smiled. "Indeed, we could not find you in the dungeons, so we feared the worst."

Ranma smiled at her old friends. "You know it takes more then a stint in a crystalline Prison to do me in." She said, "Now does anyone want to bring me up to speed?"

Happosai stepped forward, dragging the Green haired woman behind him. "After your capture, we had begun to despair for the chances of the Rebellion. It seemed that no one could figure out how to orchestrate your rescue." The old man told her, "Ultimately, it was Kunma that rallied us behind him in a brilliant, though somewhat desperate plan to attack the Senshi while they least expected it and were at their weakest."

"We received word that the Outer Senshi were off world for a mission to Alpha Centari, and Kunma decided that the time had come. We contacted our old friend, the Space Pirate Ryoko, to distract the Outers long enough for us to act. Then we mustered the army and marched on Crystal Tokyo."

"Upon our arrival, Kunma had us hold of on attacking for a day to convince the Senshi o lower their defenses a bit, and then revealed his brilliant plan of attack. Mallet based point insertion."

Ranma looked at Happosai and cocked his head in confusion. "Mallet based…?" she looked at Akane, who smiled back at her. "Ohhh… that really is brilliant!"

Happosai nodded, and then continued. "We dropped our main units in the Tower to take on the Senshi where they are weakest, one-on-one, while the army began to occupy the city. We had all the Senshi pretty much disabled, but we missed the Princess and the Queen managed to rally the Senshi and the result was our full force against theirs."

Cologne stepped up. "Had we had more time to prepare, we would have acquired some of the few magic devices and potions that can affect the Senshi in order to more effectively disable them." She shook her head. "Ultimately we just beat them up and used pressure points to ensure that they could not move, though we were surprised that the Senshi of the Afterlife had such a healing spell as to undo the effect and restore their strength."

Happosai took over. "As the battle kicked up, Sailor Pluto made for the exit and I figured she was going to tell the Princess to go back in time as she has before; most likely to prevent Kunma from being born. I arrived too late to stop the girl, but the boy was only a moment behind me, so I gave him the Nanban mirror and fed him a lie about you being 'broken' so he could cry and go into the past."

Ranma clenched her fists and began to emit a blackish-red battle aura. "YOU SENT MY SON INTO THE PAST!?!?" she shrieked, as her shield sisters glared from behind her.

"Now, Ranma…" the sweating old pervert said, "It was the only way to prevent the Princess from returning to the past and erasing your son from existence. I have been monitoring the Past using Pluto-chan's powers, though she managed to bar me from approaching the Gates of Time."

"So how is he doing?" the angry red-head grated, "You should know, if you can see the past."

"Well…" The old man said sweating harder, "I can't actually see him… You see, the Nanban mirror is protected from Pluto's sight by powerful enchantments… so we will only know that something happened when it changes something in the present."

The Red head seethed, glaring at the diminutive old man. "What about the Princess?" she said, "She did not use the Mirror, so you should be able to find out if she is succeeding or not."

The old man glanced around looking for an escape of some kind. "It… it does not appear that the Princess reached the Past at all." He said, "Her Mau did, but the Past is reshaping itself, so I can't tell if it is going to be able to change things on its own."

Ranma's fury was palpable as she glared, shaking at the old freak. Suddenly she felt something solid slide into her hand. Without looking back she grinned. "Thanks Akane." She said, hefting the Mallet and displaying it to the old man. "Now how about we try out this 'Mallet based point insertion' to have this pervert go deal with the insurgents." With that, she blurred and, with a full body swing, sent the old fool flying.

For a moment, Sailor Pluto felt a spark of hope at seeing her captor flying away. The leash had snapped, and she knew it would be only a few minutes until her powers began to return. Then she noticed the Red-haired martial artist's piercing blue eyes leveled on her.

"Hello, Pluto." Ranma said. "I did notice what he was doing and how, so don't think you can escape so easily."

She turned away from the slumping Senshi and addressed Nabiki on the other side of the table. "So what, aside from the insurgents and the CDF, do we have to worry about?" She asked, "Seems to me there are some loose ends that still need tying up."

Nabiki sighed. "Right as usual, Ranma." She replied. "We just got word from Ryoko that the Outer Senshi have gotten wind of what happened here. They had some elements of the CDF with them when they left, though they sent a portion of them to petition the Galactic Republic for aide. Their remaining forces are the Outers themselves, and perhaps fifty members of the CDF. Their ETA is a few hours from now."

Ranma sighed. "And how are our own forces holding up?" she asked, "Are we going to have what it takes when enemy reinforcements arrive?"

Nabiki sighed again. "Of our hero units, only Mousse got seriously hurt in the confrontation with the Senshi. Seems he did something to piss off Sailor Mercury and she tagged him pretty good with a weapon made of ice. Didn't defend herself at all, though. She is in the Infirmary, under heavy sedative and guard, with several broken bones and a major concussion. Ryoga is in the city overseeing our troops pushing the CDF back, but they are wishing for an increase in numbers.

"Then they shall have them, and then some."

All eyes turned toward the new voice. Ranma grinned. "So, does that mean you are mobilizing your forces to help hold the city, Herb?"

The Last Prince of the Musk Dynasty smiled. "I don't know, what do you think, Saffron?" He asked his winged companion, "Shall we assist these low-born rebels in their cause?"

The King of Phoenix Mountain pretended to think for a moment. "I don't see why not." He replied, "We are already here, and I have nothing better to do tonight this evening. Stints in tiny, locked crystal rooms do wonders for opening up one's schedule."

"Alright." Herb said, "Saotome, our forces are yours to command, whole and undiminished, since the Senshi don't like to kill their prisoners. What would you have us do?"

Ranma grinned. "Re-enforce Ryoga and Happosai, capture the remnants of the CDF, then we prepare to greet the last of our 'guests of honor'."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 26, 2009 – Si-Za's Hut, Juketsuzoku.

"Would you like some tea, Daughter of the Godslayer?" Si-Za asked, "Then we can begin to discuss what brought you here."

"Of course, Honored Elder." Kunma replied, "Though, until a few days ago, I was 'Son of the Godslayer' rather then her daughter."

The old woman dropped the cup she had picked up. "Jusenkyo?" she asked, and seeing the girl's nod, she continued. "Then would you like some hot water?"

Kunma shook her head. "No, unfortunately, it would seem that the previously frigid water of the Spring of the Drowned Girl has gone tepid in the aftermath of the destruction at Jusendo." She said with a sigh, "The result is that the effects of the spring are now permanent. The Guide is currently trying to catalogue the changes to the other springs in the wake of the destruction Saffron caused. My companion fell in a Hot Spring and now becomes a bunny when splashed with hot water."

"I see." The elder responded, "It is very dangerous indeed if these, 'Tepid Springs' produce a locked curse. I assume that the casks up carry contain water from the Spring of the Drowned Man, in hopes that you may regain your birth form."

"One of them does." She replied, "I should be able to regain my birth form in a month with it. Sadly, its water is hot, so it will result in a curse matching the one my mother had. The other casks contain un-cursed water, so that after six months, I will be able to eliminate this curse, once and for all."

The Elder gasped. "A CURE?" She cried, and then composed herself quickly. "That is an impressive discovery indeed."

Kunma nodded. "The original curse of the Springs causes all those who touch their water to drown there." She said, "If the water is removed, however, it can wash an older curse away, or so they say."

"We may have to test that." The Diminutive woman replied, "Now, though, I am curious about how you came to be, and more importantly, how you came to be here and now. That is, unless you cannot, for fear of changing the future."

Kunma chuckled. "The Amazons have long been my family's ally." She said with a grin, "If telling you of the Future can change it for the better, then so be it. My story begins a little over a month from now, in Nerima. A series of events placing my mother directly in the middle of a pitched battle between two of the most powerful groups in Japan…"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – The Meioh Residence, Juuban.

"Hey, Setsuna, come check this out!" Haruka Tenoh called to the green-haired woman coming down the stairs.

Setsuna Meioh turned into the living room, where Haruka, Michiru Keioh, and Hotaru Tomoe were gathered, their attentions riveted to the news program on the television, depicting some kind of battle.

"This was the scene, minutes ago," the Anchorman said, "as an area several blocks wide was devastated by an intense battle between an unknown group and known martial artist, Genma Saotome. And now live to our field reporter, Doko Desuka, on the seen. Doko?"

"Yes, I am here in Nerima," The plucky field reporter said, "and as you can see, the fighting seems to have been cut off by the escape of Genma Saotome and subsequent arrival of his Son, Ranma Saotome, who we believe is questioning the strangers as to their motives even as we speak. Oh! It looks like one of the strangers is challenging the boy!"

The camera zoomed in on the area where a blue-haired woman began teleporting and hurling blasts of energy at a pigtailed youth. After a few moments of dodging, the boy managed to leap up and bat the woman from the sky, chasing her with a powerful blast of his own.

Setsuna recognized the woman. "Come on, girls," she said, grabbing her coat, "Looks like we have some alien butt to kick."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Crystal Tokyo.

Ranma Saotome was not happy.

Despite the addition of the Phoenix and Musk forces to her son's Rebels, the remnants of the Crystal Defense Force within the city, with the aide of Insurgents, had managed to break the battle lines and consolidate their strength at the Crystal Prison as the Outer Senshi's return drew closer.

Moreover, the person responsible for orchestrating the CDF's Gambit was none other then the Insurgent Leader, Soun Tendo.

Nothing got under Ranma's skin like having to fight against an old friend. As it stood, the Remnants of the CDF were keeping the Prison Fortified as the Fortress it was, holding off the Rebels with its defenses, and wherein, no doubt, Soun was working on a plan to break the Rebel line and hit the Dungeons where the Queen and her remaining Senshi were being held. The last thing the Rebels needed was the Senshi at full force.

Unfortunately, when it came to the Outers, Ranma did not think that taking them all alive was going to be an option. At the very least, the youngest Senshi needed to be incapacitated. They could not risk the Senshi deciding it was a lost cause and using Saturn's powers to destroy the world.

Ranma poured over the map before her, trying to determine the best way to arrange her troops to respond to the Outers' landing, wherever it was. Fortunately the City's defenses were not all powered by magic power. Anti-Invasion turrets in key locations all over the City ensured that the Outers could not land inside the city, but with the CDF and those blasted insurgents, Ranma did not think his forces could react fast enough.

"Ranma!" Nabiki's voice rang out from where she had been monitoring the planetary sensors, "We have a ship on sensors coming in at high velocity!"

Ranma growled. The Outers were not scheduled to arrive for a few more hours. "Open a channel." She said, "Unidentified vessel, you have entered the planet Earth's Orbital Zone. Please identify yourself."

A familiar face appeared on the nearby screen. "What, Ranma, did you forget what Ryo-Oki looks like already?" Ryoko asked, "It has only been a few years!"

Ranma grinned. "Sorry Ryoko, It seems that the most focused and detailed sensors Crystal Tokyo has were tied into the Mercury computer, which got destroyed while we were taking the city." She said, "It is hard to tell one ship from another."

Ryoko grinned. "That's okay." She replied, "I would have been here sooner, but I had to swing by Jurai to let Tenchi and the others know what was going on. He says that if we can capture all of the Senshi, Jurai will make the case for the new Leadership to the rest of the Union of Allied Planets."

Ranma nodded and smiled. "Your assistance, and theirs, is more then welcome." She said, "We could use the extra firepower."

Ryoko grinned. "If that is the case, I should tell you that I have a gift for you from Yosho." She said, "Seems that he, Washu, and Tsunami finished the 'Ranma' blade, and Yosho says that if you want to use it to lock the Senshi away in a cave for a few hundred years, he will happily serve as its Priest."

Ranma laughed. Maybe this was not going to be as hard as she had feared.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

June 26, 2009 – Juketsuzoku

Si-Za sighed. "So Ranma was raped." She said with disgust.

Kunma nodded. "As you no doubt know, Jusenkyo curses have provisions to avoid creatures dying as a direct result of the curse, so, the curse locked itself to protect the child." She said, "Mother was never able to regain her male side."

Si-Za was shocked at this. "But one need only come in contact with the magic of Jusenkyo again after the pregnancy in order to unlock it once more!" she said. "It would only need the touch of another cursed person after the danger had passed! Ku-Lon would know that!"

Kunma sighed. "That is the problem." She said, "You see, during my mother's pregnancy, the Lost Boy, Ryoga Hibiki, found the cure for the curses. He then proceeded to cure everyone he could. Then… came Doombringer."

"Doombringer?" Si-Za suppressed a shiver that ran down her spine.

"Yes, Doombringer: A giant asteroid several times the size of Earth." Kunma answered, "It came into the solar system and passed close enough to the Earth that the planet was pulled into a much higher orbit around the Sun. The result was a massive, catastrophic event that became known as 'the Great Freeze'. Those lucky enough to be in strong magical focus points, like the area surrounding Jusenkyo or the City of Tokyo and the surrounding area of Japan were placed in stasis by the magic of the Sailor Senshi. The rest of the world died. It took almost a thousand years for the Senshi to find a way to return the Earth to habitable status. Jusenkyo was destroyed in the process."

"It was with the remnants of human civilization that the Senshi moved to build their kingdom. Crystal Tokyo, they called it. It was centered around the Senshi's Crystal Tower, and was designed to be a Utopian State. There were, of course, individuals that thought the Senshi were not experienced enough to run a government. This so called 'Dark Moon Clan' was captured and sent to the planet Nemesis, beyond Pluto."

"In order to avoid further complications caused by the possibility of dissent amongst the people, Neo-Queen Serenity set up a magic field surrounding the Earth that was designed to banish evil and dissonant thoughts. The only problem was that it was based on the chi of the person affected, implanting them with the suggestion of how they are supposed to act and behave as what they are."

"As you can imagine, this did not go over well with those baring dual chi types. Jusenkyo victims, even the cured ones, were receiving suggestions to correspond with each form of chi within them. Imagine being told that you are human and should abide the law, not kill anyone, not cheat anyone, not fight and be a good person, and all the while the same voice is telling you that you are a pig and should not begrudge humans for eating you. Needless to say, it resulted in what became known as the Jusenkyo Confliction. Jusenkyo victims were unable to be properly effected by the spell because it conflicted with itself, so they could resist it. Those around these conflicted individuals were able to learn to resist the spell's effect as well."

"After a while, those affected most by the Confliction began to respond. Pantyhose Taro attacked Crystal Tokyo less then a year after the spell went into effect. The many forms of chi that made up his cursed form clashed in such a manner that he lost his mind. The Senshi killed him, and became aware of those who could resist, so they passed a law that declared the resistance to be an offense punished by imprisonment until such time that the recipient stopped resisting."

"This was followed by the first Rebellion, Spearheaded by Saffron of the Phoenix people and Herb of the Musk, who attacked Crystal Tokyo with their armies, only to be turned back and captured by the city's defenses."

"Then came the Wiseman War, in which the Dark Moon Clan returned with a powerful dark magic and nearly defeated the Senshi, and would have, if not for Pluto calling this time's Senshi for assistance. Together, they prevented Wiseman, or the Death Phantom, from destroying the Earth."

"Things remained quiet for several years after that, until the Senshi captured my mother, and I formed an army and a plan to defeat the Tyrants once and for all. We invaded while the Outer Senshi were away, and captured all of them but the Princess, whom Pluto managed to send into the past with the intent of preventing my conception. I used the Nanban mirror to follow her so I can stop her."

The Elder's eyes widened. "Does that mean that your companion is…?"

Kunma cocked her head. "I doubt it. I am not sure how Usa came to be at Jusenkyo, but the Princess has a much more reliable time-travel device and I doubt she would have made such a side trip."

Si-Za nodded, still not quite convinced. "So, I gather you need a guide?" she asked. "It is the quickest way to return to Japan, after all."

Kunma nodded. "I think the Princess was headed for an appearance just before the clash between her friends and the Juraiians, which gives me about a month to get there." She said, "And I figured I would drop Usa off on the way, since she lives in Tokyo."

The Elder was about to respond when they heard a splash and a concerned yelp.

A moment later, a concerned Usa came running up the ramp leading to the hut with something held in her arms. "I… I… don't know what happened!" She stuttered, "Razor asked me to get her some water, and I tripped, and… and…" She opened her arms to reveal a small box-turtle.

"Rei-Za became turtle." Finished Si-Za.

"It is a Jusenkyo Curse, like the one you have, though it activates with cold water instead of hot." Kunma explained. "Most likely the Spring of the Drowned Turtle."

Si-Za nodded. "Jusenkyo Curses very common." She said, "Is training ground, after all. We use to train, sometimes get cursed."

The old woman's Japanese reminded Kunma of her Aunty Xian-Pu. "In any case, this might be good for a demonstration. How long has Rei-Za been cursed?"

"Almost a year." Si-Za replied, "You say cure works on curse older then six months, yes?"

"Indeed." Kunma produced one of the casks she had filled with the water of an uncursed spring. "Here goes nothing." She said, opening the top of the cask and pouring the water within over the box-turtle. In moments, the Orange-haired girl was sitting where the turtle had stood in all of her obviously natural-orange beauty.

Kunma "Eeeped" and quickly turned her back blushing brightly, causing Usa to roll her eyes while Si-Za howled with laughter and Rei-Za looked at her grandmother curiously.

"Great-Grandmother, what just happened?" the naked girl asked, "Why did cold water change me back?"

"It is a cure, Great-Granddaughter. The Elder replied, "You need no longer worry about transforming into that defenseless form again."

Rei-Za's eyes lit up. "REALLY?!?" she suddenly charged forward, striking Kunma with a variant of one of the most familiar Amazon moves, the Amazon Tackle-Glomp, sending the shocked boy-turned-girl to he ground with the unclothed Amazon on top. "Oh, THANKYOUTHANKYOUTHANKYOU!!!!"

Si-Za Fell off her chair laughing and Usa was fuming.

"Rei-Za…" the Elder said between giggles, "You should wait until the boy manages to unlock his own curse before you do that."

The Orangette gasped then blushed, and in a blur of Orange and flesh tones she shot from the room, returning moments later, clothed once more. "I apologize, Great-Grandmother." She said, returning to English once more, for their guests, "You mentioned locked curse?"

"Yes." Replied Si-Za, while a concerned/irritated Usa knelt over a now-feinted Kunma, trying to bring the locked girl around. "Jusendo fight change some springs, must remember avoid springs that is no cold or hot."

Rei-Za looked at the girl on the floor. "So… girl is boy, locked in girl-type?" she asked, "and will get boy-type back soon?"

Si-Za nodded. "Yes, and they need guide on trip back to Japan." She said.

Rei-Za brightened. "Rei-Za is good guide." She said, "Rei-Za help them." Then she shifted to Mandarin "And I will get a Kiss of Marriage, too."

Si-Za smiled back at the girl in a way that made Usa feel a sudden sense of dread. "Good girl." Si-Za said. "You leave in Morning."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – A Vacant Lot in Nerima

Ranma eyed his companions curiously. "So what is this all about, Katsuhito?" He asked, "I gather from your initial reaction to my mother's statement that her drinking from that Chalice was a bad thing, but how does it affect me?"

The Old priest was taken aback by the boy's perception. "I suppose hiding things from you now would be fruitless." He intoned, "As you guessed, we are not from this world, though that is not saying it is not our home. I have personally been here for over nine hundred years, the Juraiian Race being one that is gifted with extremely long lives. In fact, we often live for many millennia. Because of this, Juraiian Females cannot become fertile as less long-lived beings do."

Ranma nodded, his father having explained the Birds and the Bees to him years ago, and Kasumi having covered the female part of it a few months ago.

"To remedy this, the Goddess Tsunami Blessed the sea of Jurai with her power, so as to trigger fertility in those Juraiians that drink from it." Katsuhito continued, "However, as the people of Jurai became a star-fairing people, it became apparent to Tsunami that the girls who traveled off world would be unable to procreate without returning to Jurai, and since that was not practical, given Galactic law, she created the Chalices of Jurai, which carry the same blessing, and gave them to each of the most prominent families, that they and those around them would be more capable of reproducing our race."

Ranma took a moment to digest this information. "So… what happens when a human drinks from the Chalice?" he felt a momentary stab of panic, "My Mom isn't in any danger, is she?"

Washu stepped to the forefront. "No need to worry about that, young man." She said with a reassuring smile, "Tsunami's blessing could not harm a human, but it could invigorate a non-functional reproductive system for the purposes of producing a human child capable of wielding Jurai's power, and receptive to my power as the Goddess Washu."

Tenchi, Aieka, and Ryoko goggled at the revelation, but Sasami merely nodded and Katsuhito's eyebrows rose slightly.

"The gems are the physical manifestation of my divine power," Washu explained, "They were designed to allow my daughter, Ryoko, to use my power in combat, and it would seem that, with the affinity granted by the Chalice, and the Proximity of the gems throughout gestation, you absorbed the ability to use my power as well."

"I get it!" Tenchi suddenly exclaimed, "So that's how he beat Ryoko! If he can use both your power and Tsunami's, then it explains everything!"

"It would, Tenchi," replied Washu, "If he had activated or used it at all. My readings show the power is dormant. It has yet to be activated by any form of training. It is, however, strengthening his body and mind somewhat and allowing for a massive increase in his chi."

"You mean he beat me without that power?" cried Ryoko.

"Seems that way." Washu replied, "He is completely untrained in the use of the Power. That does, however leave us with a peculiar set of circumstances."

"Like what?" Ranma asked.

"Well, if you were to start developing that power on your own, without the underlying training to go with it, it could destroy the entire world." Washu replied, "So you will need to be trained by Katsuhito and myself so that does not happen."

Since Ranma was a male, Washu did not feel the need to mention that if he were female, the Chalice's fertility power might still be in effect.

"So you guys will train me to not blow up the world on accident." Ranma said, "No big. When do we start?"

Katsuhito smiled. "We can start as soon as you are ready. Ryoko, call Ryo-Oki. Ranma, would you like a ride back home?"

Hearing the "Miah!" produced by the living ship, Ranma chuckled nervously. "No thanks." He said, as the ship lowered from the sky, "That thing sounds like a…"

The pigtailed martial artist was suddenly cut off as his danger sense flared to life.

"WORLD SHAKING!"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

How will two Ranma's at two points in time fare against the might of the Outer Senshi? Can Usa reach Nerima in time to prevent whatever is about to happen? Can Kunma find a way to change history without deleting himself? Who is Kunma'a Father? Find out next time on Son of Chaos!


	6. Chapter 6

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 6: The Truth

Disclaimer: I still don't own any of this.

June 27, 2009 – Qinghai Province, China.

The two groups glared at each other, fully aware that the ground between them was about to become a battlefield. The winged forces of Saffron's personal guard arrayed themselves between Herb's fur-clad forces and Kiima, who held the infant form of their immortal king in her arms.

The Forces of the Musk were surprised that what was supposed to be a diplomatic mission to Juketsuzoku had turned into a nearly perfect chance to eliminate their hated enemy once and for all. Herb looked across the field at his hated foe, Nestled in his Guardian's arms, surrounded by a force of winged guards that were less then half the number the Musk prince had with him.

Saffron looked out on the beast-descended warriors in the way of his own diplomatic mission to Juketsuzoku in disgust. He was aware of the lack of numbers on his side, as well as his own incapacity to fight, and wished that his warriors could count on more then just their wings to grant them the advantage. The odds were against him, and the only thing he could do was order Kiima to flee while his loyal guards fought and died to cover his escape. It was a cowardly plan, but it was better then death.

As the two sides began to tense for the clash, a sudden blur of red flashed between them, and the front lines of their forces were thrown to the ground, forced to regroup quickly to assess the newest threat.

Herb and Saffron stared at the red-haired girl standing between them. "Ranma Saotome?" Herb asked in surprise, stepping to the front of his forces as Kiima, with Saffron in her arms did the same.

"No," the copper-haired woman replied, "I am not my mother."

Herb and Kiima cautiously approached the woman who appeared like the one who had bested them both in battle, as she pulled a pair of casks from her pack. Without another word, she opened one of the casks and dumped its contents over the head of the Musk Prince.

As the cold water washed over him, the Dragon-descended leader of the Musk cursed, then sighed and reached to adjust his armor to better fit his female form, only to discover that it required no adjustment. He had not changed. "W-what?!" he said with a startled look on his face.

The red-head smirked. "You are cured, Prince of the Musk." She said, turning to hand the other cask to Kiima. The winged woman took it and realized that it seemed warm to the touch. "That is water taken from one of the uncursed springs filled with Hot Water from the Phoenix Tap. It should be sufficient to restore your lord when he is ready."

Kiima looked at the girl with wide eyes, completely at a loss for words. Then a small voice rose from the child in her arms. "What are your terms?" Saffron asked, fixing the girl with his eyes, "Such gifts do not come free, especially in the presence of our enemies."

Herb nodded in agreement. It was all too good to be true. "Saotome was never the type to let us have our way." He said.

"As I said before, I am not my mother." The girl said, noting Herb's flinch at the emphasis she had placed on the word mother. "I am Kunma Saotome, and my terms are simple. Make peace with each other and your neighbors, survive and be strong. At some point in the future, I may need to call on you for help, and I expect you to be willing and able to offer it."

Kiima and Herb nodded, and then Herb extended his hand to the winged warrior, which she accepted. Then they turned to the one responsible for their armistice, only to find that the girl had disappeared.

"Like mother, like daughter, I suppose." Saffron said softly.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Outside of Crystal Tokyo.

Ranma, Shampoo, Ukyo, Herb, and Saffron stood atop the perimeter wall of Crystal Tokyo, waiting for the Space Pirate Ryoko to return from her scouting mission. Somewhere behind them, in the streets, Ryoga, Akane, and Cologne lead a detachment of Rebels to keep the Insurgents and Crystal Defense Forces pinned down, and in the castle, Happosai stood guard over the Prisoners while Nabiki studied the map and troop deployments.

As the sun began to set, the blue haired Pirate streaked across the sky and landed next to the Rebel Leader. "Ranma," Ryoko said, "It is just as we expected. The Outer Senshi, knowing that the City's Defenses are now programmed to take them down, opted to land their ship just outside their range. Looks like they are gearing up to move just after nightfall."

Ranma nodded. She produced a communicator and called the Tower. "Nabiki, are there any updates on the other points of interest?"

Nabiki was arranging some markers on the map. "Yeah." She said, "I haven't been able to cut communications between our enemies, but I have managed to tap it. Looks like they are coordinating a strike in all points of interest at once. I am not sure of the forces they have, though. They seem to be aware of my eavesdropping and keeping at least their strength from me."

Ranma cursed. "Ukyo, go reinforce Akane and the others in the streets, do whatever you have to, to keep the CDF pinned down at the prison." She said, "Shampoo, I want you to go back up Happosai at the Tower. I get the feeling they might try a gambit of some kind."

Kiima suddenly piped up. "And what of me?"

Saffron spun around and stared at the woman he was certain had perished in a battle against the Musk years earlier, and even as he did, that memory began to grow indistinct in his mind, being replaced by another.

"Kiima…" The Phoenix King said, "You died… didn't you?"

The winged woman smiled at her liege/lover. "No, my lord." She said softly, remembering her death somewhat as well, "Saotome's child saw to that."

Ranma looked at the winged woman and smiled. "So Kunma is busy in the past, then?" He asked with a slight note of pride.

Kiima, Saffron, and Herb all nodded. "She cured my curse and gave Saffron the water he used to acquire his complete form." Herb said.

Ranma's smile slipped. "She?" Ranma sputtered, "My Son got a Jusenkyo curse?!?"

Saffron shrugged. "She was in the right area for it."

Ranma developed an angry twitch, and, in the Tower, a certain old letch began to sweat.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima.

Having finally escaped the wrath of his victims, Happosai managed to make his way to the top of a nearby lamp post. He casually sat cross-legged in a meditative state, slowly restoring his body to full functionality, and scanning the area around him with his chi senses.

Suddenly, his eyes popped open. "I sense a disturbance in the Force…" focusing, he extended his chi senses even further, until a lecherous grin spread across his shriveled face. "I knew it! Magic and Miniskirts! SWEETO!"

With that, he leapt into action, propelling himself across the rooftops like a Rocket.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 19, 2009 – The Outskirts of Hong Kong.

Three travelers danced back and fourth a short distance from their Campsite, Usa and Razor focusing with all their might to strike a blow on their companion. Even after several weeks of training on the move, the Princess and the Amazon had yet to successfully land a solid blow on Ranma's child, and only together could they acquire the slight, glancing blows she was allowing them.

Usa had been feeling outclassed by her companions from the beginning of the journey, even with the training she had received from Jupiter, Mars, and Uranus in the future, she still felt that the speed, power, and grace, exhibited by even the Amazon were far and way beyond her own, and Kunma was in a different league.

Even Razor had to admit that Kunma was Poetry in Motion, and she was a bad limerick in comparison. She could tell that Usa had had no formal training beyond basic self defense before this journey, but she admired the girl's force of will, positive demeanor, and determination, as well as the speed at which she was improving.

Kunma called off the sparring match when she noticed that Usa was slowing down. She took a lot of pride in the fact that the pink-haired teen had nearly tripled in terms of speed, strength and stamina under her careful tutelage. "All right, ladies," she said with a happy grin on her face, "We should get some rest. We have a big day tomorrow. Rei-Za, are you sure you want to accompany us all the way back to Japan?"

Razor grinned, "Yes, of course." She said, adding in her own mind, "and beyond my Airen..."

Kunma nodded. "Ok, then we will scour the Docks for a boat willing to run us across the Sea."

"I think you need to worry about surviving before you go looking for a boat Femboy!"

The three women looked toward the new voice, to see a very effeminate man wearing a green vest and white pants.

"Huh?" said Kunma, "Who are-"

She was cut off by a flurry of punches from the man. After a moment of frenzied dodging, Kunma set herself and began to actively trade blows with the Mysterious attacker. The fighter's Eyes widened as the battle became more difficult then he could handle. Kunma, already slightly exhausted from his training with the girls, decided to end this battle quickly. She dodged several blows and delivered a devastating roundhouse kick to his chest, sending him flying backward into a nearby fountain.

"Who was that?" Usa asked.

"I have no id- Oh… Crap." Said Kunma as his foe rose from the water, "That must be Pantyhose Taro."

The huge winged Minotaur Bellowed and spread its wings and waved its tentacles in rage. Striking the Redhead and knocking her into a nearby tree.

Razor leapt into action, lashing out with a pair of bon-bori, only to be backhanded away by the huge creature.

Usa watched in terror as the Amazon was so easily defeated by the creature that was now looming over her Sensei, finally coming to a decision. "I won't let you hurt my friends anymore!" she shouted, "MOON CRYSTAL POWER, MAKE-UP!"

Kunma stared at the girl in shock as she spun through a lightshow with magical ribbons wrapping around her and forming a pink-themed Sailor Senshi Fuku.

Sailor Neo-Moon landed and struck a pose. "I am Sailor Neo-Moon!" she recited. "I will right wrongs and triumph over evil! You will not be allowed to harm my friends! In the name of the Moon, I will punish you!"

The Pretty, Sailor-suited Senshi slid into one of the weapon stances that Razor had taught her, summoning a scepter and holding it like a mace in her hand.

Taro backed up, making warding gestures with his hands. He had seen these individuals before. He had not been back to Jubaan since.

Neo-Moon smiled at the creature's recognition and began to advance on it.

"Stop, Usa-chan!" Kunma said, his tone denying any argument, "He has a Jusenkyo curse, just like you and me."

Neo-Moon looked from her Sensei to the fearful monster before her, and then decided to stand down.

Kunma produced a bottle of water and heated it with her ki, before pouring it over the creature that continued to cower before Sailor Neo-Moon. Taro's body shrank and shifted, his wings and tentacles shriveled away and his fur vanished. He carefully put his benefactor between himself and the demon slayer girl.

"Thanks Saotome, you really saved my tail." Taro said, "These two your new girlfriends?"

Usa and Razor both blushed.

"I think you have me mistaken with someone else." Kunma replied. "I suggest that you be more careful about who you go after, though."

Taro raised an eyebrow. "But you look just like Ranma." He said, "Are you related?"

Kunma sighed, glancing at the Fuku-clad girl before responding to Taro's question. "She was my mother."

The cursed man cocked his head. "Your mother?" he asked, "That can't be right. Ranma is too much of a guy to have a kid as a girl. She is too young, too. She could not be older then you. Sister, I would have believed, but mother? I don't think so. Look, if you are not going to tell the truth, I am not going to push it. I am out of here."

With that, Taro turned and gathered what things he had and left the three girls with much to sort out.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Crystal Tokyo.

"Ranma, come in!" came Akane's urgent call over the Radio.

"What's wrong, Akane?" the pig-tailed Martial Artist replied.

"I found Kasumi and Doctor Tofu!" Akane answered enthusiastically, "They say they want to join us!" Akane was practically jumping up and down.

Nabiki, hearing the conversation, smiled. "Good. Send them my way." She said, "With Mousse out of action, Happosai and I could use the extra muscle in the Tower. It will be safer for Kasumi anyway."

"Agreed," Ranma said, "Have the Doc reinforce the Tower to Protect the Prisoners, and we will have Kasumi figure out the logistics of feeding the troops after the battle is over."

Ranma set down the radio and looked out over the crystalline field as the enemy came into view. As she stared, the Fuku-clad women stepped out from the trees and the boy-turned-girl could not help but think back to the last time she had met these foes in battle.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima, Ranma's Flashback.

Ranma flung himself at the young, blue-haired girl just barely managing to drive both of them out of the blasts way. Sasami stared, blushing, up at the handsome martial artist as the blast shot harmlessly over his head, and the rest of the company scattered to avoid it. Ranma struggled to his feet, scanning for the enemy, only to lay eyes on a quartet of Fuku-clad women, even as one of them prepared to launch another attack.

"DEEP SUBMERGE!" the woman called out, flinging a large sphere of water at the group.

Ranma feared for a moment that he was going to get his curse activated, but this sphere was stopped and dissipated by a set of blade-like energy wings Tenchi summoned. The martial artist stared at the boy's Juraiian energy powers and was amazed as the wings shifted and formed some kind of body armor and a formidable looking sword.

Katsuhito stepped forward as well, locking eyes with the green-haired senshi that had not attacked yet. "What is the meaning of this, Senshi of Pluto?" The old priest demanded, "We had an agreement!"

Pluto looked at the man with obvious distain. "The agreement was that you could remain on our planet as long as you kept the Space Pirate Ryoko from wreaking havoc on Earth. From what I saw earlier, Yosho, that is no longer the case." She said with a smirk, "As the Princess of the Planet Pluto, Guardian of Time, and Leader of the Outer Senshi, in the name of the Moon Kingdom of the Silver Millennium, and the Future Kingdom of Crystal Tokyo, I demand that you, and all those of your family, leave this planet at once, and never return."

Aieka stepped forward, leveling an angry glare at Pluto. "How dare you!" she said, "I have you know that my brother Yosho owns the land his shine is on, so you can't make him go anywhere!"

Ryoko stepped up as well, standing shoulder-to-shoulder to the Juraiian Princess. "Yeah, and Tenchi was born here, so you can't force him to leave!" she said.

Pluto matched the glares of the two girls levelly. "You are a threat to Crystal Tokyo, and an Alien Presence on this world." She said in a deadly cold tone, "As Guardian of Time, I cannot let anything threaten our Future, and as Outer Senshi, we are charged with the task of expelling foreign threats to this world. Ultimately the choice is simple. Will you leave quietly, or will you force us to destroy you?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Hikawa shrine, Ryoga's Flashback

Rei Hino was taking a rest from her chores and sat calmly and sedately on the porch of the shine, sipping a cup of tea. Suddenly, she became aware of a loud thrashing sound, coming from the woods behind the shrine.

Listening more intently, she heard an angry voice shouting "WHERE THE HELL AM I NOW!?" followed by "CURSE YOU, RANMA SAOTOME, THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!"

Deciding to investigate, Rei got up and headed into the woods, seeking the owner of the voice and its directed rage. After all, it sounded like he was lost and consumed with dark emotions, and as a shrine maiden, it was her duty to ensure that such individuals find their way, both emotionally and realistically. It certainly had nothing to do with the fact that the guy's voice sounded like he was cute. No, certainly not.

As she made her way through the wooded area, she spotted a young, well-built, dark-haired man wearing a yellow bandanna and shirt and black pants, all of which looked like they had seen much travel. He was standing next to the small koi pond that Rei's grandfather used to use for meditation purposes, carrying a large pack with an umbrella lashed to the top of it.

Rei was staring. Not because of the hints at the boys impressive musculature, of course. She was only interested in him because he seemed so distressed. She was NOT enchanted by the dark color of his eyes, or how broad his shoulders were, or the way his pants hung across his backside. Oh, no. She was a shrine maiden, and shrine maidens are all about helping people in need. She just… Needed a slightly closer view.

A twig snapped under her foot, alerting the boy to her presence.

Ryoga turned, and he gaped for a moment when he saw her standing there, her beautiful face framed by long, dark hair, wearing her red and white shrine maiden's outfit. She was the most beautiful woman that the Lost Boy had ever seen, so, when she said, "Umm… Hello." He proceeded to use the greatest of his Hibiki charm to attempt to win her heart. That is to say, he froze, started to stammer a greeting, back peddled three steps and tripped over a loose branch, falling backward into the koi pond.

Rei ran to help the boy, only to watch in astonishment as the boy's body shrank and shriveled away, leaving a black colored… thing… struggling to escape his clothes. Rei had two thoughts: First was "Oh, my god! He is a Youma!" and second was "Minako was right. Why to all the hot guys have to be Bad Guys?" She summoned her Henshin wand.

"MARS STAR POWER, MAKE-UP!"

Ryoga managed to extract himself from his clothes and looked up just in time to see the Fuku materialize on the lithe frame of Sailor Mars. He would have gotten a nosebleed if not for the fact that his danger senses immediately told him that she intended to do him a great amount of harm.

"I am Sailor Mars; I will not allow Youma to toy with women's hearts. In the name of Mars, I will punish you!"

"FIRE SOUL!" she called out, her hands becoming a human flamethrower, launching forth a jet of deadly hot fire at him.

Ryoga dove out of the way of the brunette's raging inferno, fully aware of the fact that in his current form, he could never handle the amount of damage that even a glancing blow would bring. He flung himself into the water, hoping that the flames would not penetrate it. He was correct, but after a few moments he began to notice the water heating up. In a few moments it was hot enough to return him to his original form.

Ryoga realized that even now, if he went back out, Sailor Mars, who must have seen him change, would likely roast him before he had the chance to explain. She thought he was a youma. His only choice was to go down.

Sailor Mars realized that her flames were not enough to destroy a Youma hiding in the water, so she released the spell and prepared another.

"FLAME SNIPER!"

Ryoga moved to the bottom of the pool and extended a finger into the stone bottom just as his danger sense told him he needed to go faster. "Bakusai Tenketsu!"

The resultant explosion sent shrapnel flying, blocking any view Mars had of the lost boy as she released her arrow of flame into the water. Ryoga did everything in his power to dodge the sensed incoming attack, but still felt the searing pain as the arrow slashed along the left side of his face.

Mars prepared another arrow and watched the water until the dust cleared. Seeing that there was nothing there anymore, she dispelled the magic and wondered what that was all about.

That was the last time Ryoga got lost.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 19, 2007 – Outskirts of Hong Kong.

"So who was that?" Usa asked, dropping her transformation, "The name Taro sounds so familiar, but I can't seem to recall where." She moved to help Razor up, then turned and noticed a slightly accusing look in Kunma's eyes.

"You would likely know him as 'The First to Fall'." She said, glaring at her accusingly.

Usa's eyes widened. "The First to Fall?" she asked, "That is right… He was a creature like that, but… How could you know about that?" Her eyes widened further as a possibility dawned on her.

Kunma frowned. "I was sent back in time to stop you from changing history, Princess." She said, sitting down near the fire. "I did not even realize who you were, though, until you revealed your Senshi powers. Now I know, and I cannot allow you to prevent my birth."

Usa looked at Razor, who was moving over to sit next to Kunma, glaring at her as well. "W-what?" she stammered, looking back at her Sensei, "You mean that you were my enemy all along?" Her eyes began to brim with tears. She could not stand to have a dear friend become an enemy. Not again.

Kunma smiled softly at the girl. "No. I am not your enemy." She said softly, "I have traveled with you long enough to know that you will listen to the reason why I am against Crystal Tokyo."

Usa looked at her dear friends and nodded. "Of course I will." She said, Slowly making her way over to sit across the fire from them.

Kunma nodded in return, wanting nothing more to bring this to a conclusion without having to kill the girl she had traveled with for the last month. "Do you know why Taro was the First to Fall?" she asked.

Usa looked at her. "It was because he was the first being to resist Mom after she established the Serenity Field." She replied.

Kunma's eyes bored into her. "True, but do you know why Taro fell?"

Usa cocked her head. "No… I just heard he was crazy, or possessed."

Kunma snorted. "If Taro was crazy it was because of your mother's field."

Usa's eyes widened. "That cannot be right…" she said, "The Serenity Field is designed to help people understand what they are and be the best they can. How can it drive them crazy?"

"Jusenkyo." The former Rebel leader said. "The Serenity Field works by reading the chi of a person and compelling them to be the best of whatever their chi says they are."

Razor took over. "Jusenkyo make person have chi of person and chi of curse form." She said, "Is to balance overall chi in person, make transition easier."

Kunma nodded. "Two forms of chi means two sets of orders from the Serenity field." She said, "How would you like it, Usa, if the same thing that was telling you that you are a human girl and should act like a human girl was also telling you that you are a bunny rabbit, and should eat carrots, grass, and leaves and be cute and cuddly?"

Usa blanched. She hated her bunny form. The idea of being happy and comfortable in her rabbit form made her shiver. Then she realized something. "Wouldn't that be conflicting thoughts, though?"

Kunma smiled. "That is exactly it." She said, "Many of the Rebels that battled against Crystal Tokyo did so because they were receiving two sets of orders, due to their Jusenkyo curses, and since one person cannot be two people at once, they had to ignore it. Taro has the chi of a Yeti, an Ox, a Crane, an Eel, and an Octopus. The Magic probably produced a grand cacophony of conflicting orders that ultimately drove the man crazy."

Usa shivered. She was very small when Taro attacked Crystal Tokyo. She recalled the grim look on the Senshi's faces when they ran out to battle against this threat. She recalled, vaguely, the shattered man they dragged back into the castle and the look of sorrow on her friends' faces when they realized that he was likely to die. That sorrow had turned to outrage when the man spurned her mother's offer to heal him and spat in her face before he collapsed, dead.

"After Taro's Fall," Kunma said, "the Queen declared it an offense punishable by imprisonment to resist the effects of her magic, since doing so seemed to make people vulnerable to Demonic possession. Where do you suppose that left the ones who could not help but resist it?"

Usa nodded in understanding. "I suppose that one or two tried to petition her to drop the field, but they got arrested for resisting it," She said, "which led to the first Rebellion, the one with the winged guy and the dragon guy."

"Saffron of the Phoenix, and Herb of the Musk." Kunma supplied, "We encountered them a few weeks ago."

Usa's eyes widened. "You mean those two armies?"

Kunma nodded.

Usa sighed. "I suppose I can see how you justified attacking Crystal Tokyo." She said, "I had not realized the level of oppression that my mother was imposing, without realizing it, or listening to the people's needs. But you said you came to stop me from changing history. I am not sure what I was supposed to do."

Kunma looked at her and then at Razor. "There was a complicated series of events in Nerima that led up to my mother being raped, which resulted in my conception." She said, "My guess is that Pluto intended for you to disrupt those events, preventing my birth, and erasing me from history."

Usa shuttered at the thought that Pluto would consider abusing her powers in that way. "That is… wrong…" she said, "It goes against everything my friends ever taught me."

"That isn't all." Kunma whispered, "What would you say if I told you that it was Pluto's actions that caused the Great Freeze?"

"That…" Usa said, "That can't be. My mother would never have allowed for something like that. It is horrible, the destruction of so much…"

"So much that stood in the way of Crystal Tokyo." Kunma interjected. "Of course, she did not do it directly. Actually summoning Doombringer may have drawn her Queen's ire. Protecting it from Magical and Conventional attacks, however, and 'removing' allies who could have helped stop it…"

"What do you mean, 'removing allies'?" Usa asked, almost scared to know.

"Well," Her Sensei said, "On the day I was conceived…"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26 – Nerima, Ranma's Flashback.

"DEAD SCREAM."

Ranma closed his eyes and pulled Sasami close in an attempt to shield her from the blast. He heard the explosion a few feet behind him and was surprised to find himself unharmed. He looked up to see Tenchi standing between him and the Guardian of Time, a set of glowing white energy wings shielding him from the blast.

The Juraiian Prince then used the wings so summon his Juraiian armor and sword. Katsuhito stood next to him, igniting the ancient energy sword in his hand. "You will not force us to leave!" The old Man declared, "We worked that land and toiled on this planet for hundreds of years! We have as much right to be here as you do!"

"Shut up, you alien scum!" Uranus shouted, pulling her Space Sword and charging at the Priest. "Only humans are allowed here!"

Ranma leapt from cover and delivered a savage kick to the arrogant Senshi's ribcage. "Well, I am human, and I say my friends ain't goin' nowhere!" he declared as his opponent began to regain her feet.

Neptune tried to leap to her lover's aide, only to stop as a number of small log-like objects appeared around her. "And where do you think you're going?" Came the mocking voice of Ryoko as she and Aieka stood ready to take the Ocean-aligned Senshi on.

Sasami shifted quickly into her Tsunami form and nodded to Washu. Neither of them was at their strongest, what with half of Washu's gems in use by Ryoko, and Tsunami sealed within Sasami's physical body, but they knew that someone had to prevent Saturn from entering this battle as a serious contender. The two of them moved quickly to either side of the girl and entrapped her in a field of energy.

The battle raged on for some time, Pluto using her staff to deflect and avoid the strikes by the leaping and rebounding Tenchi and Katsuhito while Ranma and Uranus engaged each other in hand to hand with Uranus's Space Sword lodged in a stone wall 200 feet away, Neptune struggled to dodge Ryoko's energy blasts because of Aieka's log-things, and Saturn waited for the Goddesses to let her cage weaken enough that she could break it.

Pluto's Time manipulation was allowing her to hold her own against the two Juraiians, but she was beginning to feel the strain. Uranus and Neptune were going to lose at this rate, and that would increase the enemies on her. She desperately needed something to happen to turn the tide.

One should be careful what one wishes for.

"SWEETO!"

With that one word, the entire battle stopped. All eyes turned to stare at the shrunken, wrinkled old man who had just landed on top of a nearby flag pole. "I new it!" Happosai cried with a maniacal giggle, "Ranma always finds the most beautiful and powerful women! Now, to liberate them of their Silky darlings!"

"You!" both Pluto and Katsuhito said in unison and utter contempt. They then glanced at each other.

"Truce?" Pluto offered.

"Truce." Katsuhito accepted.

Both warriors nodded to their assembled troops, and everyone except Ranma, Saturn, and the Goddesses leapt to engage the perverted old man in combat.

"Hey, I know you." Happosai said as he effortlessly avoided Katsuhito's sword thrust, "You're that guy who knocked me out that one time."

Katsuhito responded by increasing the speed of his attacks.

"I know you, too." The old letch said as he casually flipped Pluto's skirt, "Donating another pair to my collection, my dear?"

Pluto's aggravated scream made the old fool giggle as he dodged her swing with her staff. He arced his landing so that Ryoko was between himself and the enraged Senshi, and took the chance to run a hand along the Former Space Pirates Behind, eliciting a howl of outrage and what would have been a devastating back-kick, if it had connected. Instead, the Pirate found the small man using her leg as step as he hopped quickly over her head to land on Sailor Neptune's chest.

"Puffu-Puffu!" He cried, giving her a good squeeze, then slid downward, taking the Aquamarine-haired girl's panties as he went. Neptune shrieked, trying to hold down her skirt, and Uranus leapt at the diminutive martial artist in rage, only to find that the freak was no longer there, and barrel directly into her lover.

Tenchi made a series of expert sword strikes, none of which met anything but air. The man was simply too small and too fast. He led the boy's attacks back toward the old priest, using the two warriors' attacks to parry each other. He then landed on Aieka's Kimono-clad bosom, forcing both warriors to stop their attack or risk impaling her, while getting a decent grope in at her expense.

Aieka brought her log-things to bear, and they unleashed lightening at the Gnome, but he used her chest as a springboard and landed in front of Sailor Saturn, leaving the Juraiian Princess to blast herself. Happosai grinned at Saturn. She was a bit young for him, but she had too much power for him not to take her panties. He jumped at her.

Happosai suddenly found himself flattened against the energy field the Goddesses had erected, which was now set to hold him out instead of Saturn in. He quickly found that there were no openings in the field and it surrounded all three of the women.

Annoyed, Happosai dropped next to Ranma, dispatching an illusion of himself to keep the rest of the fighter's busy as he stood calmly next to the boy. "Hello, Ranma, my boy, what are you up to?" he asked casually, "It is not like you to not participate in a fight like this."

"And have you play me like you are playing them?" Ranma replied, "I don't think so. I am working on something." He carefully hid his cupped hands from the old letch.

"Working on some thing?" Happosai asked. "What?" He began to hop around, trying to get a glimpse of what Ranma was hiding.

"I am not going to show you yet, ya old freak!" Ranma said, hopping around to keep his cupped hands away from him.

Happosai chuckled, focusing on the chi in his newest acquisition, creating a ball of water using Neptune's power and dropping it on Ranma's head. "If I am going to be trying to get something from you, you should be female." He said as Ranma became a girl, then leapt over her head, intending to land on her chest.

Ranma countered by taking a quick hop backwards and holding out her hand as a pair of light-hawk wings appeared out of her hands. She pointed her hand at the letch's face. "LIGHT-HAWK BUSTER-SHOT!" She called, drawing the energy in and unleashing it as a bolt of energy, blasting the old fool at point blank, launching him into orbit, leaving only Neptune's Panties behind.

The Senshi and the Juraiians quickly approached the boy turned girl to congratulate her on an excellent shot, not to mention a great ploy to get the fool's guard down.

This continued until, in a small voice, the Senshi of Saturn tugged on Ranma's sleeve to ask a question. "Excuse me," the young Senshi asked, "but weren't you a boy?"

Ranma chuckled. "Yes." She said, "It is because of this curse I got in China."

"Jusenkyo?" asked Pluto, who made it a point to be knowledgeable about Places and artifacts of great power.

Ranma nodded.

This prompted immediate investigation of Ranma's apparent change by the child's parental figures. Specifically, Neptune. The Aquamarine-haired Senshi walked up and unabashedly grabbed the neo-girl's breast. It was at this moment that Ranma remembered the pair of panties Happosai had taken from the girl, which she held in her hand.

"I think these are yours." She said with an embarrassed blush.

Now, no one can say that fate was ever nice to Ranma Saotome, but this time, it was rolling on the ground laughing at a particularly evil coincidence.

At that moment, Akane Tendo rounded a corner nearby and saw her fiancée, surrounded by beautiful, scantily clad women. She then saw that one of those women had her hand on her fiancée's breast. Then she saw (with the aide of a gust of wind) that the girl in question was not wearing any panties, and that said panties were in the hand of her fiancée. Ranma's blush was all it took to push the tomboy off the brink, and in classic Akane Tendo style, she jumped immediately to the wrong conclusion without paying attention to any of the other (more likely) possibilities.

Out came the almighty Mallet-sama. "RANMA NO BAKA!" Akane shouted, charging in, intending to mallet both her cheating fiancée and the offending female into Orbit.

When Ranma noticed the girl charging toward them and saw the shocked and confused looks on the Senshi's faces, she shoved Neptune back, turning herself into the oncoming attack, taking it full on, in hopes that it would give the Senshi enough time to subdue her enraged fiancée without anyone getting hurt. The Mallet caught her in the lower part of her ribcage, with sufficient force that she expected a decent flight, perhaps as far as Hokkaido.

Then she saw the edge of the building, a split second before her head crashed through it. As she began to black out, she thought about how much the impact had bled off her speed. "Oh, well," she thought, "who wants to go to Hokkaido anyway?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Unknown Time Later – Unknown Location, Still Ranma's Flashback.

Ranma awoke with a splitting headache, aware of only the pain and the softness of the bed beneath her. In the back of her mind, something screamed that something was wrong… Something was VERY wrong… wait… a bed? She could feel the silken sheets as they slid over her otherwise unclothed body. This was BAD.

Slowly she opened her eyes, finding the room to be mostly dark. She became aware of a soft breathing behind her, as well as the warmth of someone's body pressed against her back. Then she felt it. The Filth. The Violation. The Horror. Rolling from the bed into a ready stance, she stared at the face of her Violator.

Ranma screamed.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 27, 2009 – A hill overlooking Nerima, Ryoga's Flashback.

Ryoga stumbled through the darkened woods, unsure how he had gotten there, but grateful that his pack had been nearby when he has gotten lost, or he might have left it behind. The left side of his face was covered with burns; his left eye was a lost cause. It seemed, though, that with the loss of that eye, his sense of direction had returned.

He reached a clearing at the top of the hill, and looked down over Nerima, which sparkled like most cities do at night. Then he felt something. Depression Ki. Focused Depression so powerful that it made his own sorrows seem like nothing in comparison. Then he saw it. The Ultimate Shin Shi Shi Hokodon. The sickly green sphere appeared in moments, larger and more perfect then any Shi shi Hokodon he had ever tried to create. It was enormous, hanging over Nerima like a Sword of Damocles, waiting to fall. And fall it did. Descending toward its creator like Doom incarnate.

Ryoga was certain of one thing, and that was that he was glad he was not the one who had elicited such an attack. He watched with morbid fascination as the Sphere descended on the location of its target, a place that was about to be wiped off the face of the Earth.

The Kuno Estate.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

A. N. And there you have it. The horrible truth of Kunma's Heritage. He is the son of Ranma Saotome and Tatewaki Kuno. A lineage so evil, so wrong, that Kunma will, in the chapters to come, be faced with a choice between righting this wrong and preserving his own existence.


	7. Chapter 7

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 7: Shattered Hope

Disclaimer: I still don't own any of this.

1000 Years in the Future – Crystal Tokyo's Outermost Defenses

Ranma glared across the field as around fifty armed soldiers from the Crystal Defense Force arrayed themselves against herself and her companions. They were unimportant, though. Behind them, directing them stood three of the five most powerful enemies the Rebellion had: Sailors Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn.

The Fuku-clad Sailor Senshi had no doubt become several times more powerful since the last time Ranma had faced them, and, while she had the numbers on her side, she was also aware that Saturn did not have a pair of Goddesses holding her from acting this time.

She glanced at her companions. "Herb, Saffron, your forces can handle the CDF forces, right?" she asked. It wasn't really in doubt, since the CDF, while well trained, were too used to the Senshi being able to defend themselves and the city.

"Naturally." The Musk and Phoenix leaders said at once, the slight contempt that they felt at the question apparent in their tone.

An explosion rang out from behind the enemy lines. As the enemy spun to find its origin, Ranma pulled her radio. "Pops, Report!"

The Radio quickly sprang to life. "Mission Accomplished, Boy," came Genma's response, "The enemy escape is cut off, and their ship is scrap."

Ranma nodded. "Then this will be the final battle!" She said, "Pops, re-group your forces to flank the CDF. We attack on my signal!"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 20, 2009 – Outside Hong Kong.

Kunma had gone to bed after finishing her explanation of her past, but Usa and Razor had stayed up long into the night, Razor watching for possible dangers while Usa stared into the smoldering embers of the campfire in the post midnight hours.

Usa was trying to digest Kunma's dilemma. She knew the Martial Artist to be a kind and selfless person, and one who cared deeply for her mother. She knew it weighed heavily on her that she could have the chance to save her mother from the worst horror she had ever experienced, but it would mean being erased from history. Usa sympathized deeply with Kunma's fear of this, having been erased once herself.

Something that she had never admitted to anyone was that she could remember it. She could remember the feel of her energy and form slipping away, fading from her mind, even as her mind itself faded. She remembered the void of nothingness and how it felt to feel nothing, to see nothing, to know nothing while seconds passed like eons and there was nothing to be done but wait for an eternity in each moment and wait as hope fades and you cannot be sure if you will ever get back, or even if you were ever there in the first place.

A single tear rolled down the Pinkette's cheek, drawing the attention of her dear Amazon friend. Razor moved quickly to the girl and sat beside her. "Are you alright, Spear-Sister?" she asked, "Your thoughts must pain you so. Will you share them with me, that we may bare the pain together?" Razor had performed the Amazon right of sisterhood for Usa weeks earlier. It meant that she was now, by all rights an Amazon, and the two of them were bonded by a bond of trust that transcended their differences, uniting them as sisters, forged in the fires of battle.

Usa looked into Razors eyes and began to tell he the story of how, the last time she had journeyed to the past, the Dark Queen Nehellenia had used a powerful magic to ensnare her father, and draw him away from her mother. She told of how, as the magic began to cement itself, she had begun to fade, and though she fought against the effect, it gradually consumed her. Then she spoke of how it felt, and how it did not feel, to not exist. The Loneliness that is only possible when one is not there to comfort oneself. The pain or non-pain of nonexistence. By the time she had finished, she dissolved into tears leaning deeply into her sister's comforting embrace.

Razor found herself weeping as well, for her sister, and for all those time travelers who would find themselves in such a fate. "We cannot let such thing happen to Kunma." She said firmly, "Even if we must drag her mother to her father ourselves."

The sun began to crest over the horizon, and the Orange-Tressed Amazon suddenly smiled. "Speaking of Kunma, is this not one month Anniversary of her cursing?" She said, drawing a similar smile from her Spear-Sister, "You remember plan, yes?"

Usa nodded and looked over at Kunma, who began to stir as the light began to strike his tent. The Pinkette knew that this was to be the day when the Curse could be changed, and Kunma would most likely use the water from the Spring of the Drowned Man to restore his manhood. The Princess of Crystal Tokyo got up and began to stir up the fire, so she could begin to make breakfast.

Kunma awakened fully as the sent of cooking venison reached her. She stood and stretched and joined the two young ladies at the fire. "It is a good morning to go sailing," She said companionably, "Don't you agree?"

Usa smiled at her. "That it is." She said, "And a good day to celebrate, as it has been one month since we came to this time. A month since we met."

"A month since we were cursed." Kunma said, ruefully, but then her eyes widened a bit, "Hey, that means I can finally use the water from the Spring of the Drowned Man to change!"

Both girls grinned as Kunma hurried to her pack and produced the appropriate cask. Returning to the fire, the neo-girl held up the cask so both of her companions could see it clearly, and with no further fanfare, dumped the contents over her head.

The Chinese silk shirt, now soaked through by the magically heated water, clung to his restored male form, revealing a tightly-packed musculature that most girls would pant over. His long, black a hair and handsome visage and empowered posture served to complete this look.

Usa and Razor shot each other a quick glance and a nod, and both charged at the restored boy, both flashing into a perfectly synchronized series of punches, kicks and jumps that would have made any Amazon proud. Both of them blurred, striking with speed and precision that would have crushed all but the best martial artists under its force.

But this was Kunma. His eyes widened for a split second as he realized that his students were attacking him, but he almost instantly caught the rhythm of the fight and saw the simultaneous openings in both of their defenses. He performed a standing back flip, driving one foot into each girl's chin, sending both of them flying back several paces to land on their backs.

Bothe girls then performed a perfectly synchronized kip up, but rather then press the attack again, they both completely dropped their defenses, indicating that they were done fighting. Still moving in unison, the two girls swayed their hips slightly as the approached the confused warrior.

Kunma was just beginning to realize that something was up when the two of them reached him and four hands gently cupped his face, and two pairs of lips pressed themselves against his.

"Wo Ai Ni." They said in unison. "Wo Da Airen."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Crystal Tokyo's Outer wall.

The Fifty members of the CDF under the command of the Outer Senshi were caught in a battle between two forces of superior numbers. Their weapons and tactics had proven to be less then adequate to make up for it. In short, they were going to loose. Or at least, that was how it looked until their leaders stepped up.

"WORLD SHACKING!" Called Uranus, sending a huge ball of energy out that cut a huge swath through the enemy line on the city side.

"DEEP SUBMERGE!" Neptune called, unleashing a huge ball of water into the flanking force.

Under the magical fire of the super-powered heroines, the enemy could not stand. The tide of rebels broke, and for a moment, the CDF believed they had a shot at victory. That hope broke when the second volley of spells was met with a counter.

On the rear flank, Neptune's Deep Submerge was countered by a call of "Kijin Raishu Dan!" and a cutting energy split the containment of the water blast, causing it to fall harmlessly to the ground.

On the city side, Uranus's World shaking was met with "Hiryu-shoten Ha, Revised: Repulsing the Moon!" Much to the Defense force's dismay, a large funnel sprang up in the path of Uranus's attack drawing it in and then dispersing its energy throughout it even as it cut through their ranks.

Uranus, Neptune, and Saturn were forced to leap clear in order to avoid being drawn in themselves, leaving dozens of their men to that fate. Separated from their men, the three Senshi found themselves facing the enemy leadership on their own, as their remaining troops were forced into a loosing battle with the Rebels on either side.

Uranus glared coldly at Ranma. "So, you want to catch us alone, Saotome?" she accused.

Ranma smiled at the blonde tomboy. "I only wanted to get all our people out of the way so no more of 'em get killed." She looked up at the sky, and then glanced at Ryoko, "Ryo-Oki is going to catch those that got blown away, right?"

Ryoko smiled. "Relax; there is no ship in the galaxy more maneuverable then my Ryo-Oki." She said, "She will catch them. None of our forces will be killers today."

"Can't say the same about theirs, though." Genma said, pointing to the Senshi. "My troops are a bit worse for wear, because of their magic and live ammo."

Uranus growled. "This is war!" She shouted, "You can't have a war without killing anyone!"

Ranma shrugged. "We are doing pretty good so far." She said, dropping into a serious fighting stance, "Now did you want to fight, or stand there all day?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – On the Streets of Crystal Tokyo.

Akane held her position on the wall, and looked at Ukyo across from her. She was not sure when the Chef had arrived, but she was glad for it. The Insurgents that augmented the CDF forces had added another A-Rank martial-artist to their ranks, and that brought the total up to 3 A-Ranks and 3 B-Ranks against what had been 3 S-Ranks on the Rebel side.

Her father seemed to be calling the shots, supported by the former Kuno Ninja, Sasuke, and now Ryu Kumon. Below them were Azusa Shiratori, Mikado Sanzenin, and Mariko Konjo. The Skating Duo and Martial-Arts Cheerleader did a lot of damage up close to normal troops, but were no challenge to S-Ranked Martial Artists, as they did not fully understand the use of ki. Two Anything Goes trained martial artist and a fully trained Ninja, on the other hand, were nearly S-Rank themselves.

The addition of the Chef turned the tide in their favor. She was a better trained Ninja then Sasuke, so she could counter him directly, freeing Cologne to help with Ryoga, who, if the Crashes and explosions she heard were any indication, was locked in battle with Ryu and the Cheerleader.

The chef nodded, seeing where she was needed, and leapt up, onto a nearby balcony before unleashing a barrage of Spatula Shurikens at an unseen ninja.

Akane nodded. Cologne would help Ryoga and take care of the suppressive fire on the troops, so that left her to KO the Skaters and deal with her father. She reached deep within, recalling the day her father had informed her that she had a fiancée. As the Rage within her sprang to life, she stepped around the corner and unleashed her power.

"Oushi Mouretsu!"

Akane grinned as her "Bull's Rage" ki blast did exactly what it was meant to. The Skaters cried out in surprise as the resulting explosion hurled them through a nearby wall and put them out of commission. She charged forward, her signature Mallet appearing in her hand as she charged through the mass of CDF and Insurgent forces in a manor reminiscent of her High School morning fights. The thought brought a smile to her face as her hammer came to a sudden stop, striking the flat of her father's Naginata.

Soun locked eyes with his daughter, as the two stood, weapons crossed, not moving for a moment. Then, on an unseen signal, the battle began. The final test, the final proof of if the student had surpassed the master.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – In the Crystal Tower.

Nabiki looked up from her monitoring of the battles taking place all over the city and smiled as she saw her older sister enter her command post. "Kasumi, it is so good to see you!" She said, favoring her with a big hug. "And you as well, Doctor Tofu, we have needed someone of your expertise for some time."

Dr. Tofu looked around. "Where is Happosai?" he asked, "Akane mentioned that he was here with you."

Nabiki nodded. "He is currently guarding the High-Profile Prisoners in the holding cells just beyond that door." She said, indicating a door behind her. "Mousse and Sailor Mercury are both pretty heavily injured in the infirmary if you want to go help them…"

The touch was faint, but Nabiki recognized it immediately. "K-Kasumi…" she croaked, her eyes bulging in surprise as the pressure point took effect and her body went limp in her sister's arms.

"I am sorry, little sister." The former housewife said, as she lowered her sister to the ground. "But Serenity's Peace is a beautiful thing, and I cannot let you destroy it."

She nodded to Tofu, who opened the door Nabiki had indicated.

Happosai turned and regarded the two that entered the holding cell area. Unlike Nabiki, the old master had not yet been informed of Kasumi's and Tofu's "joining the rebels" and was thus, slightly more on edge about their appearance.

"Kasumi-chan, Ono-san." He stated calmly, "I am surprised to see you here."

Kasumi smiled a disarming smile. "We just joined the Rebellion, Grandfather," she said, "and Ranma wanted us to come here and help you protect the prisoners."

The old man also had Pluto's magic, however, and could tell when someone was not resisting Serenity's control, so when Tofu lunged at him, aiming at his pressure points, the Old Master was easily able to foresee and avoid the attack, striking back at the Doctor with his pipe, sending the man to the ground.

As Happosai grinned at his handiwork, a new voice from the door caused him to turn in surprise.

"You never were, anything but a delinquent, you old fool." Said Hinako Ninomiya, "Happo five-yen shatsu!"

The old master tried to dodge, but was clipped by the draining beam and lost a chunk of his ki. He stumbled back into the holding cell area and hit the escape alarm, closing a heavy blast door designed to prevent escape by powerful prisoners, but in this case, it closed out Hinako, leaving him inside with the Doctor and Kasumi, as well as the Five Senshi that they hoped to free. He cursed to himself as the Martial Artist Doctor and the Eldest Tendo Daughter set themselves and wondered where his reinforcements were.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – In the Streets of Crystal Tokyo.

Shampoo cursed her luck as she leapt through the air, to a counterpoint from Ryoga, lashing out with her bon-boris while the former pig-boy unleashed blast after blast of depression ki attacks on their opponent. The military Otaku was far more powerful then either of them had expected, and though the cheerleader he had been teamed with was out of the picture, he was still managing to hold both of them at bay with his savage and destructive attacks and vacuum blades.

Shampoo wished she could have avoided the battle between the two insanely destructive warriors, but between them, they had demolished a three block area right in the way of where she needed to go. She had a sinking feeling that Ryu had trained as hard some of the Rebels and was now stronger then any save the Leaders. She had to admit that she was having trouble getting out of the way of his attacks.

Ryoga Flung himself at the ground again, dropping yet another Bakusai Tenketsu, and then using the Amazon Amaguriken to send all of the fragments flying at his opponent, who cut through them with vacuum blades. Ryu was good, but he was taking damage, Ryoga was not. The only problem was that he was slowing down, he would not be able to keep dodging and it was likely that the first attack to hit him would take him out.

A sudden whirling sound, followed by loud crash announced Cologne's arrival. The Amazon Matriarch slammed her staff down on Ryu's head with the force of a bolt of lightning. The Fatigue-clad warrior stumbled and crouched, taking a moment to blink the stars from his eyes.

Cologne looked at her granddaughter and her companion as the escape alarm began to sound in the Crystal Tower. "Shampoo, get to the Tower!" she said as Ryu regained his feet. "Ryoga, go back Akane up! I will handle this one."

Shampoo and Ryoga nodded and ran off, leaving the Last Matriarch of Joketsuzoku to deal with the Master of Yama Senken.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 20, 2009 – On a Ship headed for Japan.

Razor looked out over the waves between them and their destination and sighed. "You know, when I heard of 'Saotome Fast-Break' I not think it actually technique." She said, looking at her companion. "Thought was just running away. Now I think is running away technique."

Usa nodded sadly. "I still don't understand." She said, "Why would he run away like that?"

Razor smiled at her spear sister. "Same reason his mother ran." She said, "Love too much too fast. When was she, tried hard no to think that way. Now, is he, difficult to overcome past problem."

Usa sighed. "What are we going to do?" she asked. "We will never catch him… er, her… when she is swimming as fast as she is."

Razor nodded to her and grinned. "We go to Japan, find Elder Cologne, make intent official." She said, "Then we chase our Airen. We know he will try to make sure events don't change because of Cat. We find him then, and prove we love him."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 23, 2009 – A Shore on the Western Side of Japan.

Kunma dragged herself out of the water and lay panting on the shore. She was not sure herself why she had fled at the thought of marrying those girls. To be honest, she was not sure of a lot of things. It wasn't that she did not love them, but when she realized their intent she knew. Somehow, she knew she had to run, had to flee. She knew they would follow, until she was ready.

But now was not the time. No, it became readily obvious to the time traveling teen that she had only three days in which to reach Tokyo and put her plan into place. History is not set in stone. There had to be a way to make it right. To stop the greatest calamity the world would ever know. Doombringer had to be stopped.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – In a Clearing Outside Crystal Tokyo.

Ryoko flew a strafing run, Parallel to Herb's as they rained energy blasts down on the hotheaded blonde Senshi of Uranus. To her it was reminiscent of when she and Aieka had fought against Neptune long ago, before Tenchi had chosen the Princess over her. This time, her companion was considerably preferable.

She chuckled as Uranus pulled her Space Sword. She stopped when the Senshi attacked.

"SPACE SWORD BUSTER!" Uranus called, sending blades of energy that could rend most matter in two.

Ryoko dodged, and glanced up when she heard Herb hiss. He was clutching a bloody stump where his arm had once been.

Saffron and Kiima were not doing much better. They held the advantage over the Cerulean-haired Senshi since they could fly, but her artifact proved problematic.

"DEEP SEA REFLECT!" Neptune called her attack, her mirror absorbing and redirecting all of their energy attacks back on them.

Saffron cursed as he shielded Kiima from the reflected flames and realized that his immunity to fire was not as effective as with normal flame. He was able to remain aloft in spite of the smoke coming off of his wings, but he was not going to be able to maneuver as well.

Ranma and Genma moved quickly in and out of close range with the Senshi of Saturn, trying to avoid catching a swing from that wicked polearm of hers. The Senshi of Silence's glaive sang as she swept it around in ark after ark with deadly grace and precision. Only the two warriors' raw skill kept them from being cloven to pieces. They were wearing at her, though.

Ranma caught a glimpse of Herb's wounding and realized that the Dragon Prince and Ryoko were in trouble. She dropped back out of glaive range and bid her father do the same. "Pops; go help them against Uranus." She said, "I have this one."

Genma glanced from the Senshi of Silence to the Senshi of Wind and then looked at his "son" and nodded before leaping over and hitting his new target with a devastating kick.

Ranma smiled at her father and looked at Saturn, who glared back at him, eyes full of contempt. Ranma smiled viciously and pulled out her new toy. The "Ranma" Blade ignited, producing two beams of energy, one red and one blue, off the opposing ends of it.

Saturn willed the Silence into her glaive in response, causing it to glow a dull purple in color. She charged at the pig-tailed girl, lashing out with all of her strength and skill. Ranma expertly parried the strikes and countered, forcing the Senshi to give ground. The brunette then lashed out with a quick series of strikes in combination that forced the Saotome Heir to fall back, defending with both ends of her weapon.

Ranma sidestepped a vertical slash, and countered, and Saturn leapt back, leveling the glaive on her.

"SILENCE GLAIVE SURPRISE!" She called, forcing the Martial Artist to dive to the ground to avoid her attack. Coming back to her feet, she slashed at the senshi's feet, whirling to bring the blade up where she had gone, only to find that, again, the Mistress of the Silence had leapt clear. Both crouched, eyes locked, grinning.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – In the Streets of Crystal Tokyo.

The Ruins of the once beautiful city stretched out around them. Akane lashed out hard with her Mallet, battering at Soun's defenses. The older Tendo fended his daughter off, while making precision strikes with his Naginata, giving Akane a series of small, bloody gashes along her arms and legs.

"Give it up, Girl!" Soun said, "You cannot hope to win against me!"

Akane struggled to push herself harder, Striking hard enough to Shatter Carbon Steel, but barely managing to push her Father back.

The Elder Tendo glared contemptuously at his youngest daughter. "Is that any way to treat your father?" He broke through her defenses and delivered a gash to her shoulder. "How ungrateful."

Akane leapt back and tried her Bull's Rage again. Soun slashed through the attack, dispersing the ki with a sneer.

"I thought I taught you better then that, Akane." He said, "Your anger has always been your weakness. You know it. I know it. Ranma knew it. That is why he chose to forever become a girl instead of marrying you."

Akane felt tears coming to her eyes. Ranma becoming locked was always a bad subject for her, as it had, on a very real level, been her fault. Sure, Ranma had forgiven her, but she had yet to forgive herself. She lashed out harder as her rage grew, but it only earned her several more cuts.

Soun grinned evilly. "Kasumi was a much better student then you could ever be." He said, "And she even drew a mighty martial artist into the family."

Akane's eyes widened as she realized that Kasumi, of all people, may have betrayed them. Her anger grew even more.

More battering at her father's defenses. More light injuries that, if taken alone, would have been deemed superficial, but when taken in the quantity that she had, made her head begin to spin and her movements sluggish.

She was beginning to think she could not win. Suddenly, Ranma's voice came to her. "Akane," the voice in her head said, "Your anger can be your greatest asset, but you must forge it into something stronger then rage. You must forge your anger into purpose and control and then you may find that you are far stronger then you believe."

Akane Focused, igniting her rage again, funneling it into her weapon, causing the Mallet to glow and shift. In a moment she held in her hands a Long Halberd, which glowed, laden with her ki. She charged at her father. Who laughed at her final attempt. "Foolish Child! You think a new toy will be enough to best me?" he jeered, "You cannot possibly expect–" he was unable to continue as her attack came.

She struck out with the Halberd, altering its course at the last moment, forcing Soun to put all of his effort into stopping it, only to surprise him by channeling her Ki attack through the weapon, blasting him in the face with a shot of focused Anger Ki.

As he stumbled back, she lashed out with the Halberd again, catching him in the knee, sending him to the ground as the joint shattered. She then spun the bladed end of the halberd around and laid it against his throat.

"I win." She said, as the man stared at her in shock.

Turning, she started toward the Tower, leaving him where he lay.

He wiped a tear from his eyes, and whispered, "I always wanted to see you at this level, Akane. It is too bad you were on the wrong side."

Using all of his remaining strength, Soun Tendo hurled his Naginata at his unaware daughter. It sailed through the air, sure and true, striking with a dull thunk.

Akane turned to see Ryoga standing behind her, the Naginata having pierced him through. "A-Akane…" The former Lost Boy said, as his blood pooled at his feet.

"Ryoga!" Akane dashed to the side of her former pet. "Oh, God, No!"

Ryoga chuckled painfully. "Its ok…" he whispered, "I've had worse… Can't remember when, but I have… Give me a few days, and I'll heal right up…"

Akane nodded, kneeling by his side and began tending his wounds. She would leave her traitorous sister to Happosai and the others in the Tower. Surly they did not need her help.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – The Crystal Tower.

Happosai realized quickly that the two martial artists he faced were more powerful then he expected. Kasumi must have been undergoing extensive training since the inception of Crystal Tokyo, because her combat level easily matched Ranma's when Happosai returned to Nerima all those Years ago.

The real danger was that doctor, though. The man's extensive knowledge of ki was enough that it was possible he could permanently disable Happosai's ability to drain ki. Such a thing would be a death sentence for the old man, who relied on feminine ki to survive.

Happosai bounced around, trying to avoid even the most light of brushes by the Doctor, while defending against crushing blows coming from the formerly peaceful Eldest Tendo Daughter.

He quickly realized that at half strength, he had no hope of defeating these two. So he began making soft strikes toward the more ki laden areas on Kasumi's body. The groping strikes had several effects, first being to fluster not only Kasumi, but her husband as well. The second being a light recharge as he pulled ki from the girl. It had nothing on a full grope, as it was only a momentary strike, or even a bit of time drawing energy from panties, but it was something.

Tofu began to emit an aura of anger as Happosai ran a hand between his wife's breasts, lunging forward, only to have the old letch vault over his head and kick him in the back of the head, driving him full on into Kasumi.

Taking the Initiative, Happosai produced one of his Bombs. "Happo Daikarin!" He called, hurling the Fire Bomb at the couple.

To his surprise, Tofu suddenly whirled and kicked the bomb, driving it half way into a nearby control panel. The resultant explosion destroyed the control panel and flung the Doctor and his wife hard against the wall, rendering them unconscious. Happosai chuckled at the defeat of his foes.

As he moved to inspect their downed couple, he got a sudden bad feeling. He turned slowly to look at the control panel that had been destroyed. On one of the shattered pieces, it said "Magic Disa-" Happosai's eyes widened as he heard it.

"SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

Jupiter's blast blew the ancient marital artist up against the wall, causing his entire collection of Senshi panties to pop out of his gi.

"BURNING MANDALA!"

Happosai watched in horror as his magic silky darlings turned to ash. He turned toward Pluto just in time to catch her boot hard in his face, slamming him hard against the wall again. He was about to sit up when the Mistress of Time planted her foot hard on his chest, and stuck the business end of the Staff of Time in his mouth.

"Pluto, Stop!" The Queen's command left no room at all for argument. "We are not Killers!"

Pluto looked at the woman who had been Sailor Moon and sighed. "Fine, but I am taking him along to make sure he stays out of trouble."

Serenity nodded, and looked around. "Where is Mercury?" she asked.

Kasumi raised her head a little. "Mercury… Injured..." she whispered, "In… The Infirmary…" She lost consciousness again.

Serenity looked at the blast doors, "Well, we are certainly not going out that way." She said. "Can we blast through the floor?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – In the Streets of Crystal Tokyo.

Cologne leapt about atop her staff through the flying vortex, striking at Ryu with all her might. The Ancient Amazon struck at the Yama Senken Master with the fruit of hundreds of years of Amazon martial history, as well as a few tricks she had learned from Ranma and his Son, before vanishing back into the chaos.

The Air was filled with whirling winds, vacuum blades, rubble and debris, flying in a chaotic pattern, such that loosing focus for more then a few moments would mean certain doom.

The Ninjas had played a dangerous game of tag amongst the whirling chaos, but neither had proven skilled enough to avoid its rage completely. Sasuke had fallen first, the ninja servant of the extinct Kuno clan had taken a leap at the wrong moment and been buffeted by a blast of wind that altered his course such that he was easily bisected by one of Ryu's vacuum blades.

Ukyo, having witnessed Sasuke's demise, had taken a moment to rejoice, and the chaotic winds had seen fit to guide a large chunk of shattered masonry hard against the side of her head. Cologne hoped the girl was still alive, but could not take the time to dwell on it, lest a similar fate befall her.

Using her Ki senses, the aged woman located her foe through the harsh turmoil of dust and debris. She selected a particularly large chunk of rock, shattered it, and used the Amaguriken to send its pieces at him. Seeing the chunks of rock coming, Ryu countered, as she had anticipated, with his vacuum blades. Cologne, took advantage of the Military Otaku's temporary distraction to bounce at high speed along the rocks and strike at him from behind.

Ryu sensed the organized movement amongst the chaos, and spun to face the threat, releasing a vacuum blade as he did.

Cologne lashed out with her staff, using a technique that she would never teach to anyone. The point of her staff touched Ryu's forehead in dead center as she lanced her ki into it. It was a version of the Bakusai Tenketsu designed to work on the mind. To break someone's body was one thing. To break their mind, however, was something entirely different. Even as Cologne felt Ryu's last vacuum blade pass through her, She watched the comprehension fade from Ryu's eyes as his mind reverted to that of an infant.

Both of them tumbled limply as the chaos began to fade, and the rocks that had been airborne crashed around them. Cologne died, glad that she had kept the non-lethality pact, even when her opponent had not.

Before she faded completely, Cologne thought to herself. "Children, I leave this world to you."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – In the Crystal Tower.

Shampoo charged into Nabiki's Base of Operations, flanked by a small entourage of Rebels that had also heard the alarm and decided to see if they could help. The first thing She saw was Nabiki lying crumpled on the floor. Kneeling quickly, Shampoo raised her ally's body, relieved to discover that she was merely paralyzed, and was in fact quite conscious.

It was Nabiki's eyes that warned the young Amazon of the Danger. Seeing them widen while looking over her shoulder, Shampoo moved quickly.

Without dropping the former mercenary, Shampoo hurled herself to the side, Barely avoiding Hinako's energy draining attack. Unfortunately, the rebel allies that had joined her were not so lucky. Activating the counter point to Nabiki's Paralysis, the young Amazon lunged at her opponent, bringing her bon-boris to bear.

Two dodged strikes proved that someone had taught the English Teacher the basics of Anything Goes. Hinako dodged and countered with the level of skill that Shampoo had seen in Ranma many years earlier.

Fortunately, Shampoo had gotten better since then. She performed a combination of swings and slams, throwing a little Amaguriken speed in while using the girl's attempts to drain her to pump the girl with hot ki. She led her into a spiral, cooling her own ki and then slammed the girl with a cold blast up the center. "Hiryu-Shoten Ha!"

Hinako met the ceiling. Her body was buffeted by the winds for several seconds before she crumpled limply to the floor.

Shampoo turned to see Nabiki was standing unsteadily and moving to the nearby computer terminal. And at that moment, both of them felt Cologne's passing. Shampoo stifled a sob, while Nabiki checked what sensors there were.

Nabiki cursed as she read the readout.

Senshi: Escaped. Cologne: Dead. Ukyo: Disabled. Ryoga: Disabled. Happosai: Captured. Akane: Injured but working as a medic. Herb: Seriously Injured but still in combat. Saffron: Injured but still in combat. Ranma, Genma, Ryoko and Kiima: Uninjured, but very busy. She ignored the lesser troops. They were scattered through the city and were mostly out of commission or busy.

"Looks like it is up to you and me to defeat the Senshi, Sham-chan." She said, looking at the Amazon. "If we can save Happosai, we might have a chance. Looks like they are cutting through the floor of the holding cell area in order to get to the infirmary, three floors down. Let's get there." She picked up a Blaster Rifle and headed for the door.

Shampoo shook her head, "You is needed here. Shampoo handle it alone." She turned on her heal and charged out the door, trading her Bon-Boris for a pair of Chinese Swords. They would pay for her Great Grandmother. They would pay.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Crystal Tower Infirmary.

Mousse lay on one of the beds, his ki being focused on the effort of healing. The wounds he had sustained in the battle to capture the Senshi were requiring his entire focus to heal, but he was vaguely aware of the Senshi of Mercury lying in the other bed.

Her injuries, taken in her mad attempt to attack him, were gradually proving to be too much for her Magical healing to handle. Broken bones, internal bleeding, burns, stab wounds, and other injuries were gradually exceeding her body's ability to handle them. In short, Mercury was dying. She would be the first and only one to die at the hand of the Rebel forces, unless something had gone horribly wrong elsewhere in the battle.

A crash brought Mousse out of his Reverie, so he extended his awareness to find out what was going on. He realized that the Senshi had escaped and had come to retrieve their friend. It was a nice thought, but Mousse could feel the girl's essence slipping away, even as her friends entered the room.

"Mercury!" Venus exclaimed as she saw her friend. "Oh, my God!"

Serenity entered the room and moved quickly to the blue-haired girl's side, taking hold of her hand.

Mercury stirred, looking up at her Queen. "Usagi-chan… I… I'm so happy you escaped…" she whispered, "I don't think… I can help you… anymore…"

Tears were rolling down Serenity's face as she tried to be strong. "Its ok, Ami-chan," She said, "You just focus on getting better, ok?"

Mercury looked at her friend. "I… don't think I can…" she said, her voice now a horse whisper. "Usagi-chan… You have to be strong… You know you can win… Remember… I… will always be… your friend… I will always… be… with… you…"

Mercury's hand squeezed Serenity's hand and then her body went limp.

Serenity stared down at the still form of her friend, not believing. "Ami-chan…" She whispered between sobs, "Ami-chan!" It became more urgent, "AMI-CHAN!!!" Finally a shriek. Grief swept over the Senshi as they realized the cost of this war was already greater then any war they had faced so far.

It took but a moment for Serenity's grief to turn to anger.

Mousse steeled himself for the retribution that he knew would come to him, as the one who had inflicted the wounds that had killed Mercury. It would be but a few moments before the Queen, who was now ranting and raving, would notice him, lying there, defenseless, and would turn her rage on him.

Then he heard something. The door. "You no escape again!"

Shampoo's voice.

Neo Queen Serenity whirled on the girl, glowing with rage and magic. "Escape?" She whispered. "I am not going to ESCAPE… I am not going anywhere… I am Sailor Moon. I AM SAILOR MOON AND IN THE NAME OF THE MOON, I AM NOT GOING TO STOP UNTIL ALL OF YOU MURDEROUS REBELS ARE DEAD!"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Everywhere in or Around Crystal Tokyo

All the warriors currently capable looked at the sky. A dark cloud appeared and began to swirl around the Crystal Tower.

The Allies of the Senshi felt the passing of Mercury and felt great sorrow, and greater still apprehension. The Queen's rage wafted over the city.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Crystal Tower Infirmary.

The Queen's Dress shifted into a dead-white fuku, reminiscent of the fuku she once wore, years before. She held in her hand a Silver Sword. A sword called Death.

The other Senshi stared in undisguised horror. Their queen's face had never been contorted with such rage. They could do nothing but bare witness to the terrible effect of Moon's Wrath.

The Amazon before her swung her own weapons at the Fuku-clad Queen, only to find that upon contact with the Death Sword, her own blades were hacked off to the hilt. She attempted to strike in hand-to-hand hoping to disarm her opponent, only to receive a vicious kick that sent her to the ground. For a moment, Shampoo stared into the queen's face as she raised the sword over her head to finish her off.

The room went silent and still for a split second, then was dominated by the sound of hardened steel splitting the air as it flashed toward its target, and then the sound of the blade sinking into the flesh of its target.

Serenity's Eyes widened as she stared at the barbed blade protruding from her chest.

Shampoo looked past the Insane Senshi to see Mousse, on his feet before his bed, holding the end of the chain connected to the sword buried in Moon's back.

Serenity shivered as her transformation dropped. "I…" she stammered, "I only wanted… to make… the world… happy."

She collapsed, dead. As she fell, Endymion leaped to her side, catching her and letting her down slowly, even as Mousse fell, and Shampoo rushed to his side.

"No one… can hurt Shampoo." Mousse said. "Wo Ai Ni…"

The Senshi felt like their hearts were cut out. The Queen was dead. With no Princess to replace her. Somehow, they all knew what came next.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1000 Years in the Future – Ground Zero.

All of those fighting outside the city stopped when Mercury died. At the sudden wellspring of rage they sensed, the Rebels broke off to go and help as they could. When it ended, moments later, the world seemed to quiver. Sailor Uranus and Sailor Neptune knew what had happened and embraced each other as Saturn rose into the air, with her eyes glazing over.

"THE QUEEN IS DEAD!" The Senshi of Silence declared in a dead voice that could be heard the entire city over. "THE EMPIRE IS ENDED!" Then she raised her glaive.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

The End of the World – In the streets of Crystal Tokyo

"DEATH"

Akane wrapped her arms around Ryoga and shivered in terror.

Ukyo pulled herself from the rubble and looked at the sky.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

The End of the World – In the Crystal Tower

"REBORN"

Nabiki ran into the holding cells and wrapped her arms around her sister.

In the Infirmary, the grief-stricken Senshi bowed their heads, waiting for the inevitable.

Shampoo cradled Mousse, rocking him gently.

Happosai said "Screw it." and leapt to Pluto's chest.

Pluto looked down at the Letch curiously.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

The End of the World – Ground Zero.

"REVOLUTION!"

Uranus and Neptune held each other as death descended upon them.

Genma cowered.

Kiima and Saffron wrapped each other in their wings.

Herb Stared at the descending doom.

Ryoko flew straight up, calling Ryo-Oki as she fled, hoping to escape the blast radius.

Ranma was having none of this.

The red-haired marital artist leapt up at Saturn, calling her light-hawk wings as she ascended. The Wings became Jurrian battle armor, and her sword became two swords. The Mistress of the Silence looked on in shock as her foe flew up with no lesser intent then to halt the Silence itself. The Energy Blades struck the Glaive with the force of an asteroid, only her Powerful Magic allowed Saturn to Maintain her grip on the weapon. The Silence was coming, but this last bastion of Sound and Light stood in its way.

Spinning through the air, the Warrior lashed out against the being that would destroy all she knew and loved. The Silence or no, the fate of the world was on the line, and "Ranma Saotome DOES NOT LOOSE!"

The two forces of Nature raged against each other in the Skies over Crystal Tokyo. Hope began to stir in those cowering below.

Ranma delivered a punishing series of blows to Sailor Saturn, knocking the glaive from her hand. The weapon plunged downward as Ranma gave chase. It became a race to determine if Ranma would catch the weapon before it struck the ground.

Saturn suddenly struck the Hero from above, slamming her hard into the ground. The glaive fell, like an arrow, impaling her and piercing the ground below.

A wave of deep red energy engulfed the martial artist, freezing her in her tracks, silencing her forever.

The Silence Spread, whirling through the city like a cold, red maelstrom, stopping everyone who remained. It spun its way around the world, engulfing all life. It froze them all like statues, and for one, long moment, the entire planet was absolutely still. Then that moment ended, as in a massive wave of purple power, the entire planet was swept away.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

AN: And that takes care of the World of the Future. Sure, it might have happened differently if Kunma was still there, but since the magic of Usa's Time Key causes the two time periods to be linked, there is no way he can return and fix it.

For those of you wondering how I am going to solve assorted temporal problems inherent with the few options that Kunma has, I will tell you that the Usa's key and the Nanban Mirror work on two drastically different versions of Time Travel magic. (Mixing magic can have… Odd… effects).

Oh, and I fully expect to get yelled at for letting Ranma loose at that last moment. Fact is, it is a testament to Ranma's power and will that she managed to not only be able to move in the face of the Silence, but actually stand up against it. While everyone else cowered and huddled with their loved ones in the face of the inevitable, Ranma faced it down to the very end, and died as a proud Samurai Warrior, and that is no loss.


	8. Chapter 8

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 8: Picking Up the Pieces

Disclaimer: I don't own any of this.

After the End of the Earth – Somewhere Outside of Time.

The Mist-shrouded Gates of Time were surrounded by a deep, almost reverent silence as if to mourn the passing of all that they had once protected. The cold, still gates waited patiently, though, if aware of what was about to happen.

All at once, the silence was shattered, as in a flash of light and sound two forms appeared before the Mighty gates.

The first was Sailor Pluto, Senshi of Time and Order, and Ruler of this place.

The second was a small, wrinkled old man, the one they called Happosai. He was a powerful warrior in his own right, but the Gates recognized the power of their Mistress, the Senshi of Time, running through him. It amended its opinion of him, deciding him to be the Senshi of Time and Chaos.

Pluto Sank to her knees, her cold, calculating façade shattering as she began to sob uncontrollably. The old man lent her his shoulder, aware that there were a time and place for all things, and this was neither the time nor the place for his usual antics.

"There, there, my dear," Happosai said in a soft, gentle voice. "everything will be alright."

"ALRIGHT!?" Pluto shrieked, flashing from shattered sorrow to white-hot fury in the blink of an eye. "IT'S ALL GONE! THE WHOLE GOD-DAMNED WORLD HAS BEEN DESTROYED AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! NOTHING WILL EVER BE ALRIGHT AGAIN!!!"

The old man took on a sterner look as he regarded the young-looking woman before him. "Now Pluto, you know as well as I do that there is still a chance to make this all right," he said, "for the children at least. But we have to get our heads together and figure out what to do next."

Pluto looked at he old man her mood frosted by his words. "Chibi-Usa?" she asked, and seeing the old man nod, her eyes widened. "B-but Chibi-Usa is gone. The Gates cannot find her."

The old man chuckled. "Do you really think so?" he said, "I have had enough of your ki to know that you were aware of the Nanban Mirror's ability to cloak its user from the gate's view."

"But that Chibi-Usa-chan used her Time Key to go back." Pluto countered, "And besides, the Nanban Mirror creates an alternate timeline, separate from the real one. It can't change things in this timeline."

"And, yet, it is." Happosai replied, "Or did you not know about Kiima? Returned from the grave never dead, that one."

Pluto paused and looked at the old man. "But that is impossible."

Happosai chuckled. "I have a theory." He said, "Suppose that during transit into the past, the magic of the Nanban Mirror were to intersect with the Magic of the Time Key." The Mirror would create an alternate timeline, and the Key would carry the targets into the past of this one…"

Pluto perked up. "Forcing the two timelines to exist simultaneously in the same space, both changing the Timeline and not changing it…" She theorized, "Blocking the view from the Gates and yet, at the same time, allowing the current timeline to be altered."

"My thoughts exactly." The Old man told her, then switched gears. "So what exactly was all that destruction about? Hotaru never seemed like the 'Smash the game because you lost' kind of girl."

Pluto sighed. "It was a failsafe, programmed before the kingdom fell." She said, "Basically, if the Queen dies, her descendents are recalled by the Gates, to take the throne, and more importantly, the Silver Crystal. If there are no descendents detected, the Gates order Saturn to destroy the world the Queen was last on in order to keep the crystal out of the hands of the ones that killed the Queen. Of course, it was assuming that the Crystal would be with the Queen as apposed to hidden from the Gates with the Princess"

The Old Man nodded, solemnly.

Pluto thought about it for a moment. "It is all your fault."

Happosai looked at her and cocked his head. "What is, Plu-chan?"

"Everything. With the power you stole from me, you were able to hide the significance of Jusenkyo and the Martial Artists in Nerima, you encouraged them to rise against the Senshi, ruining their destiny and ultimately killing the Queen, and you sent Kunma back in time and made Usa undetectable and invisible to me." She said, "It would not surprise me if you had a hand in the Wiseman War, too."

"Indeed, though mostly it was to sow decent." Happosai admitted, "However, as good I am, you are wrong. I have seen much of your memories, and I am not the X-factor you failed to count on. I would not have been able to do anything if not for the one being that you, in your arrogance, failed to consider as being a variable. The one person who could destroy the chances for Crystal Tokyo to succeed long before I was even in the picture."

"Who?" The Mistress of Time demanded. "Who did I ignore as a variable?"

"Who contracted me to help find the Nanban mirror?" he asked, "Who offered me anything I wanted in order to find it? Who backed out on the deal and forced me to steal the mirror from the Amazons? Who got drunk, dropped her guard, and let me have the tools that were the key to all of this? Who is to blame for all of it? No one, Pluto, except yourself."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 23, 2009 – In the back country of Japan.

Kunma was setting up camp, waiting for the water in the pot she had suspended over her fire to heat up. Admittedly, she was as comfortable in her female form as her male form, since she had spent over a month in it, she longed to her male side's strength again.

Kunma was an excellent martial artist regardless of gender, of course. Her mother had always taught her to adapt her art to whatever strengths and weaknesses she had due to situation, and adapting it to her female body had been simple. As a woman, Kunma was faster, more agile, and more flexible, as well as possessing a far deeper pool of mana, which is the energy used for magic. His male form, on the other hand, was physically stronger, tougher, and larger, as well as having a considerably greater well of ki. Kunma's mind was unaffected by his form, but he noticed that his charisma was different between forms; as a female, she was attractive, but as a male, he was imposing. Each side had their uses.

As the water began to steam, she felt a strange surge. It was something very similar to the feeling she got when Usa had transformed into Sailor Neo-Moon, but different. It reverberated through her mana pool like a distant explosion on the surface of a pool of water. Yet it also felt like the energy that surrounded Usa as long as she had known the girl. It felt like… Time.

Dumping the water out and extinguishing her fire, Kunma packed her things and started to move again. Time was limited. Her speed would be necessary to do what needed to be done before the time ran out. The cat had arrived. She less then three days left before the event, and so much to do.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

A Month After the End of Earth – On the Planet Jurai

Ryoko bowed her head in shame as she faced the man she loved. "There was nothing I could do." She said, a single tear rolling down her cheek. "When the Queen died, Saturn flipped out. It was all I could do to call Ryo-oki and escape before the Silence consumed the planet."

A shocked silence spread through the audience chamber as the young emperor's closest friends and advisors took in the magnitude of what had happened.

Emperor Tenchi looked down at the redemptive space pirate with a sad frown on his face. "So there were no survivors?" he asked.

Ryoko sighed, "Well, there were a few members of the Crystal Defense Force that Ryo-oki caught after Ranma blew them away with that tornado attack of hers." She said, "Unfortunately, no ships besides Ryo-oki seemed to make it beyond the blast field, though out sensors could have been blocked by the Silence itself."

Tenchi nodded. "Azaka, Kamidake, find quarters for all of the survivors that Ryoko brought back." He said, "Washu, Mihoshi, I would like you to organize an expedition to where Earth was, to search for survivors that Ryoko missed."

"That won't be necessary. All of the survivors are here." Everyone turned to find the source of the new voice.

Tenchi leapt to his feet, bringing his sword to bear and Ryoko spun around igniting her own at the sight of none other then Sailor Pluto standing in the door of the audience chamber.

"Now, now," a second new voice said, "there is no need for all of that. We need to talk." Happosai stepped out from the green-haired woman.

Tenchi's eyes went wide. "Happosai?" he asked, "How did you survive, and what are you doing with her?" he gestured with his weapon at the woman at whose feet all of the atrocities of the Sailor Senshi of Earth were laid.

The old man smiled. "Ryoko wasn't the only one to find themselves presented with a means of escape, my boy." He said, "I took a chance, guessing that taking Pluto with me would allow me to bypass the defenses on the only safe place her powers could teleport me to."

"The Time Gates." Washu speculated, and was rewarded with a quick nod from the old man.

"Initially, we had intended to find a way to find the children we sent into the past." Pluto said.

"You mean Ranma's son and that Princess of yours?" Ryoko asked, glaring at her.

"Yes." Pluto replied, "The two of them were lost to the Gates due to the mix of magic between the Gates and the Nanban Mirror. It took us several months of subjective time just to recalibrate the Gates to see them again." She sighed ruefully. "We learned some interesting things."

Sensing that the conversation had drifted off of its true course, Happosai picked it up. "We had intended to let whatever was going to happen, happen." He said, "But we made a discovery that is forcing us to take action. Pu-chan?"

Pluto nodded. "Washu-chan, could you bring up the most recent scans of the Sol System?" she asked, and as the red-headed genius complied, summoning a holographic image of Earth's Solar System, Pluto continued. "As you are all aware, 16000 years ago, the Moon Kingdom known as the Silver Millennium had colonized and, using powerful magic, terra-formed most of the planets in the Solar system, ensuring them to be inhabitable for its Billions of residents. This magic was fueled by the Silver crystal as well as the nine planetary mana streams provided by the planets in return."

"Unfortunately, when Queen Beryl and the Dark Kingdom destroyed the Moon Kingdom, they broke that magic, wiping out all life on all but the one planet capable of sustaining its own ecosystem and mana pool without external assistance, Earth. This drastically reduced the Sol System's overall mana production, as lifeless planets produce less mana then a single city the size of Crystal Tokyo. Unfortunately, I was a fool, driven by a vision of a destiny that was not meant to be. I allowed, and in fact, encouraged, a calamity that wiped out most of Earth's population, reducing the mana pool further."

Pluto looked ashamed with herself. "What we were unaware of, was that, in order to maintain the nine planetary ecosystems, the Sun too, was being controlled by magic. Magic designed to be maintained as long as there was sufficient mana to maintain it. Before the Great Freeze, the Earth itself was producing more then sufficient mana to maintain it, as well as build up an extensive mana pool. Unfortunately, the Earth's Mana production dropped to that of a dead world during the great Freeze, forcing the Solar magic to draw on the mana pool alone. This was only slowed by the resurgence of population after the Freeze, as the Planet's ecosystem had been ravaged. Given time, Earth would likely have started to produce enough mana again before it became a problem, but when the Queen died with the princess AWOL, the Silence claimed the planet, reducing its mana to zero. Even Earth's planetary mana pool is gone."

Tenchi's eyes widened. "So what are we talking about, here?" he asked, a very serious look on his face, "A Supernova?"

Pluto shook her head. "Unless something is done, the result will be a gravitic event of such magnitude that it would trigger a chain-reaction that will destroy the galaxy as we know it, if not the entire Universe."

"Well, you can say one thing about Queen Serenity," Ryoko said, "She sure knew how to say 'fuck you' in the face of defeat."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 25, 2009 – Tokyo Harbor.

Razor and Usa hurriedly disembarked the passenger ship, easily evading port security and slipping into the city proper. They could not afford to waste the time explaining what they were doing entering the Country without documentation.

Razor leapt an alleyway, and motioned for Usa to follow. "We must hurry." She said, "We have less then a day to enlist the help of Elder Ku-Lon. I think it would be best to avoid involving her granddaughter, Xian-pu. She is Ranma's wife by Amazon law, even as we are Kunma's wives. She will not agree to let what needs to happen, happen."

"Wouldn't Elder Cologne have the same problem," Usa asked, "if Shampoo is her granddaughter?"

"No." Razor said with a certain shake of her head, "The Elder's main interest is what is best for the tribe. The God-Slayer must be added to the tribe. Pregnant Jusenkyo victims, by law, are inducted as women into the first tribe to find them, regardless their birth form, and there is no Musk or Phoenix around to beat Ku-Lon to the punch."

Usa nodded as the two landed in front of a building bearing the name with a large sign declaring it to be "Nekohatten".

The two girls entered and a voice in the back called out. "I will be there in a moment! My wait staff is apparently busy on some errand right now!"

The two girls looked at each other and nodded, waiting patiently. Their patience was rewarded as an exceedingly small and shriveled old woman, balanced precariously on a similarly gnarled and old wooden staff hopped into view. "Now, then, what can I get for you…" she started, trailing off as she recognized the Amazon standing before her, "By the Gods! Rei-za, is that you, child?"

The young woman beamed at the Elders recognition. "Indeed, Elder Ku-Lon," she replied, "it has been far too long."

The Elder smiled at the first proper pronunciation of her name in months (Even her granddaughter and Mousse had taken to calling her "Cologne" when they even bothered to use her name at all) then looked at the girl's companion.

"Who is your companion, Rei-za?" she asked, switching to Mandarin, "And what errand brings you so far from the village?"

"I am Usa, and we are here to save the future." The pink-headed girl said in fluent Mandarin.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

A Month After the End of the Earth – Juraiian Royal Council Chamber.

The Emperor and his closest advisors, as well as Sailor Pluto and Happosai, sat around the large conference table.

Washu stood next to a large screen on one end of the room, pointing at several numeric equations with a pointer. "I have run all of the numbers and it seems that Pluto is correct." She said, "The gradual loss of Mana being fed into the Sun's solar processes will eventually cause them to run out of control until the entire thing erupts in an event previously unknown in recorded history, a Graviton Flare. It has been postulated that such an event may have occurred and caused the chain of events leading up to the creation of the universe, essentially collapsing it all down into enough of the Omega particle to restart it."

Pluto nodded gravely. "I believe it will take eons of time, but the process will quickly wipe out all life and even collapse time in between." She said, "There will be no avoiding it."

"Then we must stop it." Queen Aieka said, a note of finality in her voice.

"Indeed," Washu agreed, "but how? I doubt that the mana pool will accept Juraiian energy and the Mana from other worlds will never reach far enough."

Tenchi stood. "Could we re-terraform the other Solar System Worlds?" he asked, "So that they could take on the burden?"

Pluto shook her head. "Not enough time." She said, "Even if we had the mana to spare to do it, since Juraiian Energy won't work there either."

Ryoko spoke up. "What about recalling the Princess?" she asked, "She still has the Ginzuishou, right? Wouldn't that have enough Mana?"

Pluto shook her head again. "No, while the Ginzuishou has more then sufficient power to refill the Mana pool, and maintain the Sun, it would be a temporary fix." She said, "The same imbalance of incoming and outgoing mana that is draining the Solar Mana Pool would eventually drain the Ginzuishou as well."

Happosai sighed, "In all of our considerations, we have determined that there is only one way to stop the end of all that exists." He said, drawing all eyes to him, "We need someone to fulfill the Mana long enough to shift the energy requirements over to Juraiian energy."

Washu's eyes bulged. "That would take years to do, even if we had already researched it, and the research will take decades!" she declared, "Not to mention the strain on the ones doing it."

Pluto smiled. "Actually, we think we have found a way to do it in a fraction of that time." She said.

Washu's eyes widened further. "How?" she asked, "It would require…"

Pluto smiled wider. "It would require someone capable of using both."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 25, 2009 – Nekohatten.

The closed sign marked the door as Shampoo returned from her most recent attempt to woo her beloved. This surprised her as it was one of the more busy times of day. Only matters of great importance could draw such a closing.

Curious, the young Amazon moved to a nearby window, sliding it open silently to avoid giving herself away. She crouched near the window, listening intently to the conversation inside.

"… So I learned that she sent me back in time, intending for me to prevent his conception." Said a Pink-haired girl, "But I had already fallen in love with him, so Razor and I gave him the kiss of Marriage."

Shampoo's eyes widened when she saw her old friend Rei-Za was the girl's companion.

Cologne rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "Indeed, it is good that you came to me, with this information." She said, "The fact that Ranma will be brought into the fold so soon is an excellent boon, as well as the addition of his son. I don't think that this 'Kunma's' identity should be spread around Nerima just yet, though, as such a revelation would surely jeopardize the circumstances of his birth."

Shampoo was already off. Her Airen was going to get one of his Fiancées pregnant and she would be damned if it was going to be anyone but her.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 25, 2009 – Nerima.

Like a ghost, Kunma passed quietly over the wall of the Tendo Dojo under the cover of Darkness. She knew that here, of all places, she would find some food and possibly an ally. She drifted like a shadow into the kitchen, opened the refrigerator and smiling. It seemed that her mother's stories about how well Aunt Kasumi had kept her kitchen stocked were no exaggeration. She began the labor of making herself a light snack, something to tide her over for the following day.

As she gathered the ingredients and started to heat some water, a soft "Oh, my!" caused her to turn toward the door leading to the family room.

There stood a younger looking version of her Aunt Kasumi, obviously surprised to find someone up and raiding her kitchen at this time of night. "Ranma?" She asked, "If you wanted a snack, you could have just… Wait. You're not Ranma. Who are you and what are you doing in my kitchen?"

The older woman looked afraid, and she was: She was afraid that this was another of Ranma's suitors here to harm people in her family; She was afraid that it might be some Princess out to kidnap someone again; and most importantly, she was afraid that this person might use up all of the meat that she was planning to serve at breakfast.

Kunma smiled at her. "I am glad to see that youth has not dulled your perceptions, Aunt Kasumi." She said, "I am not Ranma. My name is Kunma, and I have come from the Future to prevent one of the most terrible disasters that ever befell the Earth."

As the water reached temperature, Kasumi stared at the girl. "Oh, my! How rude of me, I will help you with your food." She said, picking up a butter knife and beginning to assist Kunma in the making of the food. "So, are you and Ranma related? You look just like his female form."

Kunma smiled at her, lifting the kettle and pouring the hot water over her own head. "Yes." He said, "I called Kunma Saotome, and I am Ranma's son."

At the door of the room, a shadowed form that had been leaning against the wall as to remain unnoticed slid back into the shadows. As she returned quietly to her room, Nabiki Tendo pulled her cell phone. "I need all of Saotome's girls and Rivals in the park tomorrow morning. Make it happen."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Tendo Dojo.

Ranma knew there was something wrong from the beginning. Sure, he was woken up by a standard grab and throw out the window, followed by a none-too-graceful splash in the Koi pond and a round of "Beat the Panda", but as he toweled off after his morning soak in the furo, he noticed a glaring difference.

Kasumi, Nabiki, and Akane were already gone. True, Akane sometimes left without him, and Nabiki almost always did, but Kasumi? He did not have time to dwell on this, as he only managed to snatch an apple to eat before the Panda handed him his pack and pushed him toward the door.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima Park.

Nabiki glanced at her underling looking anxious. "Is everyone here yet?"

"No, mam," the girl said, "Ryoga was lost and Shampoo declined your invitation."

Nabiki sighed. "I guess the rest will have to do." She produced a bullhorn, "LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!" Nabiki announced, "I have gathered you all here today to let you know that a new piece of information has come into my possession: A piece of information so incredible that it may turn all of Nerima on its ear! This information is so sensitive, it may produce a lead to Ranma Saotome's final choice of a bride, or the secret of his ultimate defeat!"

Akane Tendo glared at her sister. "What are you selling now, Nabiki." She asked, angry about how easily her sister would hand out potentially destructive information for just a little bit of money.

The Middle Tendo grinned evilly. "Why, I happen to have it on good authority that a Time traveler has come from the future." She said, "I am merely offering this individual's name, identity and some insight into his probable whereabouts."

"So, you are saying this person might know who Ranchan ends up with?" Ukyo asked, "How much?"

"Indeed, you have piqued my interest as well, Nabiki Tendo." Tatewaki said, "I would know which woman Saotome soiled with his foul seed, that I may prevent such a travesty from occurring!"

"I think it is safe to say that we all seek to know who this person is, who can tell us about the future of my Ranma-sama." Kodachi put in, "Even though I already know the answer."

Nabiki grinned. "Then let the bidding begin."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima.

Ranma was rapidly becoming more concerned about the events of the day. He was fairly certain that either Nabiki was up to something, or someone had kidnapped the Tendo sisters in the night. Again.

He became more and more aware of the fact that things were simply too calm. Then he heard a phrase that calmed his fears somewhat.

"RANMA, PREPARE TO DIE!" Ryoga shouted, lashing out at the pigtailed martial-artist with his umbrella.

Ranma grinned at his friend and parried the strike, embedding the umbrella in the sidewalk. "Finally!" He said, patting Ryoga on the shoulder, "The lack of action was starting to scare me. Ryoga, do you know what's going on?"

Ryoga looked at his rival, confused. "What do you mean, Ranma?" he asked, "Has something happened?"

Ranma sighed. "I am not sure." He said, "I am getting one of those feelings… You know, like your danger sense is telling you that impending doom is around every corner, and you just know its there, in the form of a new fiancée, or a crazy Prince, or Akane's cooking!"

Ryoga grinned. "Well, Ranma, no need to speculate!" he said, "Your doom is right here!" He charged at him, pulling back his fist and throwing a punch with the destructive power of a locomotive.

Ranma sighed, "Aw, you're no help." He said, sidestepping the attack and redirecting its force, adding an uppercut to it to send the lost boy into the Stratosphere. He paused, looking around, expecting a mallet at any moment. When it did not come, he sighed again.

Something very bad was about to happen. He just new it.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

A Month After the Destruction of the Earth – In the Juraiian Conference Room

Emperor Tenchi looked at Pluto, his eyes curious. "So you are suggesting that, by forcibly separating the timelines, we might be able facilitate the creation of someone capable of saving us?"

Pluto nodded. "Kunma and the Princess seem to be getting along rather well in the past," She said, "even to the extent of pledging marriage. Given time, they are likely to produce a child capable of utilizing all of both of their abilities."

Washu whistled. "That would be rather impressive, but why do you need our help?" she asked, "Wouldn't that be completely within your powers, with the Time Gate to just access the future of that timeline and get the child?"

Pluto sighed. "Unfortunately, the Gate is already interfaced with that timeline, via Usa's time key, syncing the flow of time on either side, and since we don't have the ten or twenty years to just wait, we have to break that link." She said, "Worse yet, it has to be done from Chibi-Usa's end, but I can't communicate with my past self, due to interference from the Nanban Mirror, so the only way we can do so is by sending this back." She held out her hands and a ball, shaped like a cat's head with a crescent moon on its forehead, appeared in her hands."

Ryoko glared at her. "And you need our help with this, because?" she asked.

Pluto sighed. "The Time Gate operates on the same mana pool as the Sun." she said, "And we can't connect to the past without draining it. We need another power source."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima Shopping District.

Kasumi smiled fondly at her companion. It had been so nice of Kunma to offer to help her with the shopping. The girl from the future, in girl form because of a nice lady throwing ladles of water on the street, was carrying a large stack of groceries one-handed that would have taken Kasumi several trips had she been alone.

Kasumi and Kunma had had several lovely conversations, but the girl had not yet revealed who her mother was. She had talked all about the war, and how they had fought against the would-be rulers of the world, the Sailor Senshi, and how he had been sent into the past to stop the Princess from erasing him from history, but then fallen in love with the same princess and decided to create a brighter future for the whole world.

Kasumi envied that kind of adventure. It all sounded like something Ranma would do, though she had seen the reports about the Sailor Senshi from time to time, and she did not think it made sense for the Defenders of Love and Justice to become the cruel and heartless beings that Kunma described.

Suddenly, Kunma's danger sensed went off, and in a sweeping motion, she swept her auntie up and, while still balancing the groceries in her other had, leapt to the second story of a nearby building, narrowly avoiding a speeding bicycle that screeched to a halt where she had been standing.

Shampoo dismounted her bicycle and looked up at them. "You!" she said, pointing at Kunma, "You is Kunma, no? You look like you's father girl-type. Come to Xian-Pu. Xian-Pu is mother, no?"

Kunma giggled. "Sorry, Auntie Xian-pu." Kunma said, "My mother respected you as a Spear-Sister. But you are not her."

Shampoo shivered. She glared at the girl as she turned and, picking up Kasumi, vaulted over a building toward the Tendo Dojo.

As Kunma and Kasumi got into the next street with Shampoo following behind, they encountered a foursome that made Kunma sigh.

Nabiki lead Akane, Ukyo and Kodachi Kuno and pointed directly at her.

"Come back!" Shampoo demanded, "Tell Xian-Pu who is mother!"

Nabiki stepped forward, the other three backing her up. "Indeed." she said, "Enlighten us."

Kunma chuckled. "Auntie Nabiki, it is always nice to see you." She said, picking up a hot kettle from a nearby open-air tea shop and changing back to his male form. "As I know you heard this morning, I am the son of Ranma Saotome."

"Yes, yes, we know that!" Ukyo said, stepping forward. "We want to know which one of us is your mother!"

Kunma sighed. "I really don't have time for this." He said, turning toward the Dojo again. "I need to get these groceries back, right Auntie Kasumi?"

The Older girl nodded, but before she could say anything, she was interrupted.

"Hold now, Nabiki Tendo!" came the confident voice of Tatewaki Kuno, "I have acquired the necessary funds from my off shore account, now show me this abomination that is Ranma Saotome's son!"

Kunma's eyes flashed with rage as he set the groceries down and cast an apologetic glance at Kasumi. "I will say this in earnest." She said in a low and deadly voice, "I have no pride in my father. My mother was raped, and then she killed my father."

With that, Kunma turned and vanished, moving faster then any of them could see.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Furinkan High School.

Ranma shivered, his danger senses screamed at full alert. He knew that something was terribly wrong, but he could not be sure what. Akane was not in class. Neither was Ukyo. He was so on edge that Miss Hinako did not drain him, since he was not asleep. There had been no sign of Kuno all day, brother or sister. Shampoo had not shown up either. Even Principal Kuno was out hunting missing student, and so made no attempt to cut his pigtail off. Nothing happened all day. The only slight change was when Tsubassa, dressed as a trashcan asked him if he had seen Ukyo.

Ranma decided to head for the Nekohatten.

July 26, 2009 – Hikawa Shrine

Rei Hino was taking a rest from her time contemplating the Great Fire and sitting on the porch of the porch of the Shrine sipping a cup of tea. Suddenly, she became aware of a laud thrashing sound, coming from the woods behind the shrine.

Listening more intently, she heard an angry voice shouting. "WHERE THE HELL AM I NOW!?" Followed by, "CURSE YOU, RANMA SAOTOME, THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!!"

Deciding to investigate, Rei got up and headed into the woods, seeking the owner of the voice and its directed rage. After all, it sounded like he was lost and consumed with dark emotions, and as a shrine maiden, it was her duty to ensure that such individuals find their way, both emotionally and realistically. It certainly had nothing to do with the fact that the guy's voice sounded like he was cute. No, certainly not.

As she made her way through the wooded area, she spotted a young, well-built, dark-haired man wearing a yellow bandanna and shirt and black pants, all of which looked like they had seen much travel. He was standing next to the small koi pond that Rei's grandfather used to use for meditation purposes, carrying a large pack with an umbrella lashed to the top of it.

Rei was staring. Not because of the hints at the boys impressive musculature, of course. She was only interested in him because he seemed so distressed. She was NOT enchanted by the dark color of his eyes, or how broad his shoulders were, or the way his pants hung across his backside. Oh, no. She was a shrine maiden, and shrine maidens are all about helping people in need. She just… Needed a slightly closer view.

A twig snapped under her foot, alerting the boy to her presence.

Ryoga turned, and he gaped for a moment when he saw her standing there, her beautiful face framed by long, dark hair, wearing her red and white shrine maiden's outfit. She was the most beautiful woman that the Lost Boy had ever seen, so, when she said, "Umm… Hello." He proceeded to use the greatest of his Hibiki charm to attempt to win her heart. That is to say, he froze, started to stammer a greeting, back peddled three steps and tripped over a loose branch, falling backward into the koi pond.

Rei ran to help the boy, only to watch in astonishment as the boy's body shrank and shriveled away, leaving a black colored… thing… struggling to escape his clothes. Rei had two thoughts: First was "Oh, my god! He is a Youma!" and second was "Minako was right. Why to all the hot guys have to be Bad Guys?" She summoned her Henshin wand.

"MARS STAR POWER, MAKE-UP!"

Ryoga managed to extract himself from his clothes and looked up just in time to see the Fuku materialize on the lithe frame of Sailor Mars. He would have gotten a nosebleed if not for the fact that his danger senses immediately told him that she intended to do him a great amount of harm.

"I am Sailor Mars; I will not allow Youma to toy with women's hearts. In the name of Mars, I will punish you!"

She began to summon her powerful flame to incinerate the evil little thing. "FIRE-"

"STOP!!!" The new voice rang through the trees, shocking Mars out of her spell, and allowing the mana to dissipate. She looked up to see a cloaked figure. "That's no Youma. It is merely a victim of Jusenkyo! A poor cursed boy who becomes a beast when exposed to cold water! Hot water undoes the effect!"

Mars paused momentarily before picking up a handful of water and heating it with magic, and pouring it over the pig, causing Ryoga to revert to his human form, then spun on her heal and covered a bloody nose. She turned her attention to the cloaked figure.

Seeing pink hair beneath the girl's hood, Mars's eyes widened. "Chibi-Usa?!?" she exclaimed, "Setsuna said you were dead!"

The girl grinned. "Rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated." She said, "But that is beside the point. I need your help. Call the Inners."

Mars nodded and glanced at the boy standing behind her, looking confused. "What about him?" she asked, "He saw me transform."

Usa walked over to him. "You're Ryoga Hibiki, right?" she asked, and he nodded, so she continued, "Good. Know this: If you help us, the man called Ranma Saotome will be put through a worse hell then even you can imagine, and if you serve us well, we can and will cure both of your curses."

Ryoga grinned viciously. "Count me in."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima.

The group of girls walked slowly back to the Tendo Dojo. Each carried a portion of the groceries that Kunma had been carrying. Kasumi had been adamant that since they scared her helper off, they would carry them for her. Only Tatewaki, the arrogant jerk he had always been, got away, since Akane, Shampoo and Ukyo had knocked him into orbit.

As the girls walked, they talked about what they had learned.

"Well, I suppose Shampoo is out." Ukyo said, looking at the frowning Amazon, "And me as well. Neither of us would need to be raped. If anything, we want it more then Ranma does."

Kodachi sighed. "I must admit, I cannot see a situation wherein Ranma would take me forcefully as anything but consensual." She said, "Of all of us, it seems only Akane Tendo meets that Requirement."

"Maybe," Nabiki said, "But I think we can rule out all of Ranma's regular fiancés."

Kasumi nodded, but the others seemed confused. "Why so?" Akane asked.

Nabiki looked around the group. "Be honest," she said, "Do any of you actually think you can kill him?"

The girls looked at each other in astonishment as Nabiki continued. "The guy's been blown up, chased by wolves, crushed, thrown in a pit of starving cats, thrown off a cliff, hit with attacks that could crush concrete, shot at, thrown in front of a train, and forced to swim more then one ocean." She said, "And that was all before he was ten. Do any of you really think that you have what it takes to kill him?"

The girls looked at each other in shock. "Mercenary Girl is right." Shampoo said, "Ranma is very good at not dying. Xian pu tried many times, but Ranma always get away."

Nabiki nodded. "What makes no sense is that everything I know about Ranma tells me that he would not even consider sex consensually because of the trouble it would cause." She said, "Let alone rape. It doesn't fit."

Akane nodded. "As much as I like to say he's a pervert, I was always figured it was more likely that one of you would rape him." She said, "Or…" She stopped, her eyes going wide and her bag dropping to the ground. "His other form."

Nabiki's eyes widened as well. "That would mean…" she said, in a low voice.

"…that Ranma is Kunma's mother." Ukyo finished.

"Is a tragedy!" Shampoo declared. "We cannot allow!"

Kodachi watched as the other three martial artists leapt to the roofs, and charged across the town. "What-what are they talking about?" she asked, a look of total confusion on her face.

Nabiki sighed. "I will try to explain, after we get these groceries home." She said, picking up one of the dropped bags.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Nekohattan.

Ranma entered the Nekohatten, expecting (and in fact, hoping) to be attacked by Mousse the moment he entered, but was somewhat surprised to find the blind duck locked in a cage.

Cologne smiled at Ranma, "Having a good day, Ranma?" she asked companionably.

Ranma clutched his head. "NO!" he said, "Something is wrong. Something is messed up! I have not fought any of my rivals or seen any of my fiancés all day! I have not been drained, hit with a mallet, run over by a bicycle, offered food, wrapped in a ribbon, or hit by a boken all day. I have not even been changed into my female form except this morning, and now, to top it all off, you just called me 'Ranma' instead of 'Son-In-Law'. I just know something terrible is about to happen!"

Cologne chuckled. "It could have something to do with this 'Saotome from the Future' Mousse was talking about. Your son, he said."

Ranma's eyes widened and he turned on his heel and fled, leaving a laughing Cologne behind him.

The Old Woman turned to the Duck next to her. "This looks like it is going to be some show." She told him. "Shall we go watch?" The duck quacked and she lifted the cage and left the shop, locking the doors behind her.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

AN. I may take some time to write the next chapter. The raw amount of chaos inherent in the coming battle is going to be tough to write when you consider all the players.


	9. Chapter 9

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Chapter 9: Winging It Like a Saotome.

Disclaimer: I don't own it.

July 26, 2009 – Nerima

Washu cursed the foolishness that always ran rampant among those who thought themselves most wise.

It wasn't that it was a bad idea to come to Nerima to look for Genma Saotome, the thief from years earlier, in fact Washu had to admit that asking the man directly would have been the quickest way to discern the whereabouts of the items he had stolen all those years ago. It was not, however, Kasuhito's wisest move to insinuate to Ryoko and Aieka that locating the Ancient Juraiian Breeding artifact would result in them being able to use it with Tenchi. Good for motivating them, yes. Good for inspiring tact when encountering said martial artist, no.

It was this foolishness that lead to their current situation of chasing the slippery devil all over half of Nerima. She could have sworn that the fat balding man must have been half rat for all the times he had slipped over, under, around, or through seemingly impassable obstacles to escape the attempts of the trio of aliens to box him in.

In truth, it was only Washu herself that kept the three fools one step ahead of the sneaky thief. He was fast and he knew the area better than they did, but Washu had the area scanned with her computer and was able to track him and predict his escape routes. With her assistance they finally caught him in one of Aieka's force fields.

Ryoko entered the dome of the shield and advanced on the cornered thief, a beam sword glowing in her hand, and a menacing glow in her eyes, hoping to scare the coward into giving up. Unfortunately for her, like any cornered rodent, this rat was a dangerous one when time came to fight.

Moving at high speed, Genma suddenly rushed at Ryoko, catching the blue-haired woman off guard, slamming his shoulder into her at a speed that sent her hurtling backward into Aieka's shield, demonstrating its effect on something the Princess did not allow out. Ryoko howled in pain as a bolt of energy poured through her.

"Hey!" Ryoko shouted at the Juraiian Princess, "That isn't supposed to happen to ME!"

Aieka laughed imperiously. "I do believe," she said, "the phrase is 'all's fair in love and war'."

Next to Washu, Tenchi and Sasami, who had been watching looked at each other and shook their heads.

Katsuhito entered the shield, and looked at the downed Pirate. "Come on Ryoko!" he said, "Keep your guard up! Genma is as slippery as his master was!" He then ignited his sword and charged at the overconfident martial artist.

The tide quickly began to turn against the bald martial artist, as the two-on-one battle tactics, mostly consisting of Ryoko shelling him with energy blasts while Katsuhito would engage him at close range any time he got clear of the blasts.

Washu was keeping an eye on the police bands, and was pleasantly surprised to find that the police were opting to leave this fight alone under some "Nerima Provision". She was starting to get bored when her scanners detected a number of high level energy signatures heading their way.

Intrigued, she examined them, surprised to find that some of them were showing power to match that of Ryoko easily. The program beeped and informed the Genius that one of the energy sources had landed on a building nearby. She looked up to see a young man with black hair in a pigtail standing on top of the building. He seemed to be taking stock of the situation.

Oblivious to the new presence, Katsuhito shouted out to his clearly somewhat injured opponent. "Give up, Saotome. You cannot deny that you are outmatched." He declared, "You will pay dearly for what you did at the shrine those many years ago."

As if to punctuate the threat, Ryoko launched a few more energy blasts. The resulting explosions blew caused a nearby building to cave in slightly.

"Be careful, Ryoko," Tenchi called, "if you keep blowing things up, in this town, we are going to draw a lot of unwanted attention!"

Washu smiled in recognition of the fact that Tenchi was being one of the wiser ones here, but decided to allay his concerns. "Relax, Tenchi," she told him, "I am monitoring local police frequencies, but it seems that they are actually warning each other away, mentioning something called the 'Nerima Provision'."

A moment later, the energy signature that represented Genma Saotome on her screen flickered and vanished. She looked up at the field where he had been a moment earlier, only to find him nowhere to be seen.

"DAMN!" Ryoko shouted looking around and frowning angrily, "Where did that Bastard go? Washu, can you get him on scanners?"

Washu ran another scan, then another, then did a diagnostic on her scanners and then sighed. "No, he just… vanished." she responded, "Aieka, how did he escape the field Azaka and Kamidake were covering the area with? Don't they block teleports?"

"Indeed they do, Miss Washu," Aieka said, examining the two guardian logs for some kind of defect, "But it does not seem that he built up enough power to penetrate the shield either. What do you think, Sasami?"

Aieka's sister closed her eyes for a moment and then opened them again. "It's like he's hiding." She said, "I think he is still here, just hiding so we cannot detect him, so we will think he escaped and let our guard down so he can get away."

"We cannot allow that." Katsuhito said, then took a deep breath and shouted. "GENMA! WE KNOW YOU ARE STILL HERE! YOU CANNOT ESCAPE PUNISHMENT FOR YOUR CRIMES! IF YOU CONTINUE TO HIDE, WE WILL DESTROY EVERYTHING INSIDE THE FIELD!"

Washu sighed, and hoping that the man had not truly lost sight of their goal to such an extent as to carry out his threat. A dead man could not tell them what he did with the stolen items, after all.

She was almost relieved when the pigtailed boy stepped forward. "Don't bother, Pops is already gone." He called, drawing everyone's attention. "He has a technique that lets him move instantly and undetectably."

Washu was kind of impressed with the boy's composure. She was fairly certain he was lying, but it seemed like they had a better chance of the boy cooperating then the older man, so she decided to play along. "That's some technique," she said, dispelling the computer for the moment and turning to face the youth. "And who might you be?"

The young man developed a rather insufferable smirk. "Ranma Saotome." He said simply. "So what, exactly, did my Pop do this time?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Hikawa Shrine

When the rest of the Inners had arrived, for the emergency meeting, they were shocked to discover the little princess they thought was dead was not only alive, but had grown to their own age. "More time passed in the future then here." She explained.

This did not mean, of course, that it took her any less than ten minutes to pry herself free of her hysterically happy mother's arms. After the warm and tearful greeting, they finally got down to business.

"Okay, girls," she said, "Here is the deal. Crystal Tokyo was attacked by a force of Rebels. They captured everyone, and Setsuna sent me back to prevent the Rebel leader from history. To prevent this, the rebel leader, Kunma, used another magic to come back as well."

Minako jumped up. "Oh!" she said, "Like that American movie, Terminator!"

Rei hit her over the head. "No, you idiot!" she said, "The Rebels in that movie are the good guys, trying to avoid going extinct at the hands of the murderous and Tyrannical machines."

Usa sighed. "She is more right then you know." She said.

The girls stared at her wide-eyed.

She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "I did not get back with Dianna because the Rebel leader's magic caught me and took me with him." She said, "Neither of us realized who the other was, and we were going in the same direction, so we traveled together. Eventually I learned why the Rebels were fighting against Crystal Tokyo. The magic that was used to secure peace for us was repressing them. They could not be affected by it and, because of a law, were thrown in prison because they could not."

The girls stared at her in shock. "But… Crystal Tokyo is our Utopia." Usagi whispered. "Our perfect ending."

Usa sighed. "A Utopia cannot exist where there is free will to have different ideas of what it should be." She said. "In the future, you use magic to force everyone to be what you think they should be, so that your Utopia can exist. The Rebels are people like Ryoga here. Many of them had two forms, so the magic could not tell them what to be. They were branded as traitors by Crystal Tokyo, and condemned for their freedom. If that isn't Tyranny, I don't know what is!"

Usagi was in tears by the time her daughter finished talking. Their dream for the future was flawed. In bringing it about, they would be going against everything they stood for. "It… can't be…" she whined, "Our dream can't be evil."

Usa's face darkened. "That isn't the half of it." She said. "I think Pluto has been orchestrating the whole thing from the start. Protecting the asteroid that causes the Great Freeze, Preventing advances in Science that may help stop it, and even removing allies with whose assistance, we could have stopped it."

Makoto looked at the girl in surprise. "Removing?" she asked.

Usa scowled at the thought. "Kunma told me that Pluto had pushed certain factors that lead to a war in the Jusenkyo valley." She said, "The three kingdoms of powerful warriors, mistrusting each other, drastically reduced each other's numbers until they stood no chance against what was coming. And more than once, she and the Outers have used their positions as the guards against threats from the outside to kick helpful and powerful alien races off the planet."

Usagi looked shocked. "They sent away potential allies?" she asked, "But the Great Freeze is supposed to kill Billions!"

Usa sighed. "For Pluto, the end justifies the means." She said, "Even if it means sacrificing a few Billion lives to make the numbers more manageable for Crystal Tokyo."

Usagi's expression changed from one of sorrow to one of resolve. "She must be stopped." she said in a voice so low they almost could not hear it.

Usa nodded. "I do have one problem, though." She said, "I think that Dianna and Pluto may still attempt to stop Kunma's conception. If Kunma is never born, all that happened since I met him will be undone, and Pluto will win. Worst of all, it happens today, in Nerima."

Usagi stood up. "Then we have to go there and stop Pluto from preventing it!" she declared.

All of the Inners nodded.

Ryoga watched the proceedings with little interest. Something was striking him as off about that girl, but if it meant a cure, he was more than willing to do as she said.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – On the Rooftops of Nerima

Cackling happily, a shriveled old man bounded across the rooftops, glancing back often at his pursuer. It wasn't often a pretty girl sought him out wanting his help. He truly enjoyed the back-and-forth of how she would earn his favor, but he fully intended to make her work for it.

And work she had. The orange-haired Amazon girl had been chasing him around since that morning when she had interrupted his morning panty-raids. She had managed to impress him by staying with him this long, and had even managed to come within a few inches of tagging him.

"Blast you, Old Fool!" Razor shouted, "Razor not have time for this! You gonna stop and talk to Razor or not?"

Happosai sighed. "Kids these days, so impatient." He said, hopping to the next rooftop. "Fine." With that, he stopped so suddenly that the orange-haired Amazon barreled straight into him and got a first-hand demonstration of why some villages in China referred to him as "Happosai of the Thousand Hands".

Yowling in indignation, Razor lashed out with a series of attacks that Kunma had taught her.

The Aged Master evaded it, but cocked an eyebrow. "That was an Anything Goes form." He said, stepping back and putting some distance between himself and her. "Ranma's personal variation. The one he has been working on specifically to counter me." He narrowed his eyes. "Now, where did you learn that?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Inside Aieka's Shield

Genma watched with no small amount of pride as his son dodged blasts from the Cyan-Haired woman. Not that Genma could not have done so himself, of course, no. He would have whipped the lot of them by now if he had not felt his son approach and decided it would be good training for the boy. That was the only reason he was hiding, of course. Not like he was worried about losing. No, never.

The Priest's exposition had come as a surprise. He had never expected a theft like that to come back to haunt him. That Priest should have died years ago, and indeed he was very spry for his age.

Indeed, Genma recalled the day the old guy managed to blow the Master away. Soun had been so happy to be even momentarily free of him that he had run off into the woods leaving Genma with a prime chance to score some fast cash.

He had grabbed the Golden Cup and a decent haul from the donation box and was about make a run for it when he had noticed the "Demon cave". Knowing how these off the map shines worked, he figured the best loot would be in the creepy cave no one would enter. He found the sword and figured no one would miss some of the gems off it.

He recalled returning home with the loot to find his fiancée waiting up for him, demanding to know why he had come home with three red gems and a gold cup. He was just happy she had accepted his explanation that they were engagement gifts.

Genma snapped back to reality and grinned as he watched his son dodge a blast, causing it to hit the regal-looking girl. The purple haired girl and the cyan-haired one started yelling at each other, and the distraction was more than enough for Ranma to jump up and plant the Demon in the concrete below. Genma almost chuckled. Like father like son.

When Ranma landed, he began speaking to the priest, though Genma could not hear what was being said from his vantage point behind one of the bigger piles of rubble.

After a minute of them talking, Genma heard Ranma raise his voice. "In any case," he said, "since Pop is gone, we won't be able to ask him what he did with them. However, I know someone else here who might know."

Genma heard the sound of flesh striking metal. Then looked up just in time to have a bucket full of water hit him in the face. Oh, what had he done to deserve such an ungrateful son? He supposed it did not matter, as he was a panda now, and could possibly escape. Letting out an irritated "Growf", he emerged from his hiding spot.

"Is that… a Panda?" asked the girl responsible for the shield, apparently letting it go in surprise.

Genma held up his standard "Just an ordinary Panda" sign.

"More importantly," the guy who had stayed in the background asked, "did that Panda just use a sign to talk?"

"Yup," Ranma replied, "this is Mr. Panda, the unofficial mascot of the Saotome clan. Almost like one of the family, he is." He smirked, causing Genma to wince. "Now, 'Mr. Panda,' do you know what happened to those items? I hope so, because I would hate to have to give these nice people a Panda skinned rug as a consolation prize."

Genma winced, resisting the urge to pull his "disrespectful son" sign, realizing that only by playing along could he get out of this with his hide intact.

"He gave them to your mother" *flip* "as a wedding present." his sign announced. Genma was rather proud of his ability to make signs on the fly like that.

"Wow," the little girl said, with childish delight, "What a well trained Panda!"

"You can play with him if you want," Ranma told the girl, shooting Genma that damnable smirk of his. "He WILL do as you ask if possible, while I give my mother a call."

All Genma thought from that point on was how disrespectful his son was, and how he would pay him back for this disgrace later.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – The Meioh Residence, Juuban

"Hey, Setsuna, come check this out!" Haruka Tenoh called to the green-haired woman coming down the stairs.

Setsuna Meioh turned into the living room, where Haruka, Michiru Keioh, and Hotaru Tomoe were gathered, their attentions riveted to the news program on the television, depicting some kind of battle.

"This was the scene, minutes ago," the Anchorman said, "as an area several blocks wide was devastated by an intense battle between an unknown group and known martial artist, Genma Saotome. And now live to our field reporter, Doko Desuka, on the scene. Doko?"

"Yes, I am here in Nerima," The plucky field reporter said, "and as you can see, the fighting seems to have been cut off by the escape of Genma Saotome and subsequent arrival of his Son, Ranma Saotome, who we believe is questioning the strangers as to their motives even as we speak. Oh! It looks like one of the strangers is challenging the boy!"

The camera zoomed in on the area where a blue-haired woman began teleporting and hurling blasts of energy at a pigtailed youth. After a few moments of dodging, the boy managed to leap up and bat the woman from the sky, chasing her with a powerful blast of his own.

Setsuna recognized the woman. "Come on, girls," she said, grabbing her coat, "Looks like we have some alien butt to kick."

"Wait." A new voice said.

Setsuna and the others turned to see Chibi-Usa's Grey Mau come down the stairs behind them.

"That is in Nerima, right?" Dianna asked.

Setsuna nodded.

"Then I am coming, too." The cat said, "I may be able to get some idea of what the Princess and I were supposed to do."

Hotaru bent down and picked the cat up and then Setsuna nodded. "Alright, let's go."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – Saotome Household

Sasami liked Mr. Panda. He was fun. He knew lots of tricks, maybe as many as Ryo-Oki. He could even talk with signs, though she could not figure out where he got them, or how they were so specific.

Sasami did not want to tell anyone, but she liked Ranma, too. He reminded her of Tenchi, and not just because they could both use Jurai's power, either. He seemed full of spirit and the desire to help people. He had the Strength to fight when he had to, but also the Wisdom to avoid unnecessary fights.

As they approached his mother's house, Sasami decided she wanted to get to know him better. "I agree." Tsunami said within the confines of her mind. "I will suggest that Yosho and Washu offer to train him in the ways of Jurai's power, so that we can do just that."

Sasami smiled.

Ranma rang the bell. A few moments later, a lovely traditional-looking Japanese woman, presumably Ranma's mother, answered it. She greeted them all, and then invited them inside. She bowed deeply to Katsuhito and nodded to Tenchi, then greeted each of the girls individually. She seemed to be evaluating them based on their responses. When she got to Sasami, the girl was ready.

Sasami responded to Nodoka's greeting with a curtsy. "Hello!" she said brightly, "I am Sasami. It is nice to meet you, Lady Nodoka."

Nodoka was clearly pleased. "And you as well, Sasami dear." She said with a smile. "If you would all come this way, please?"

As the lovely woman lead the others into the other room, Sasami stopped, noticing some pictures on the wall. There was one of Lady Nodoka standing next to the Thief, Genma, and a small boy, who she took to be Ranma, all standing in front of a tree. Then there were several pictures of Nodoka alone standing before the same tree. Sasami thought it was odd. She could tell that the pictures were taken in sequence, as the tree was small in the first and gradually became larger. Where were Ranma and Genma all of those years? The last three pictures were taken most recently and apparently on the same day. The first showed Lady Nodoka, Genma and Ranma. The Next showed a picture of the Lady, Mr. Panda and a Red-Headed girl. Odd. Could Ranma have a sister? If so, where was she in the earlier pictures? The Final picture showed the red-head, Mr. Panda, a man with long hair, and a number of lovely girls, many of whom were glaring at each other hostilely. Who could they be?

She was considering asking when the others began to say their farewells. It was no matter. She could ask next time she visited Lady Nodoka. Saying goodbye, she followed the others out.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

A Month After the End of the Earth – Somewhere Outside of Time.

Pluto watched the events unfolding in the synchronous past and cursed. She was not sure that the forces arrayed to help Kunma survive were sufficient to stop the boy from being erased by those determined to prevent his birth. She did not entirely know how the fused magics that created the timelines worked, but she did not want to trust them not to allow his erasure.

She and Washu had been working on a Juraiian energy power pack to supplement the Gate's energy long enough for her to send the Luna-P through. If they could disconnect before the conception, Kunma would be saved. But as time clicked down, Pluto realized that the odds were definitely against the Luna-P getting there fast enough. She could only hope that those set to save Kunma had the power to stop those set against him.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

July 26, 2009 – A Vacant Lot in Nerima

Washu agreed quickly with Tsunami's suggestion that the boy needed to be trained, as the power lying dormant within him could put the entire world in jeopardy. Of course, she also intended to lock the boy in her lab for a few weeks, to find out what made him tick.

When they reached the vacant lot, Ranma was the first to speak. "So what is this all about, Katsuhito?" He asked, "I gather from your initial reaction to my mother's statement that her drinking from that Chalice was a bad thing, but how does it affect me?"

Washu grinned at the slightly surprised look on the Priest's face. The old man sighed. "I suppose hiding things from you now would be fruitless." He said shifting into his teaching tone, "As you guessed, we are not from this world, though that is not saying it is not our home. I have personally been here for over nine hundred years, the Juraiian Race being one that is gifted with extremely long lives. In fact, we often live for many millennia. Because of this, Juraiian Females cannot become fertile as less long-lived beings do."

The boy nodded.

"To remedy this, the Goddess Tsunami Blessed the sea of Jurai with her power, so as to trigger fertility in those Juraiians that drink from it." Katsuhito continued, "However, as the people of Jurai became a star-fairing people, it became apparent to Tsunami that the girls who traveled off world would be unable to procreate without returning to Jurai, and since that was not practical, given Galactic law, she created the Chalices of Jurai, which carry the same blessing, and gave them to each of the most prominent families, that they and those around them would be more capable of reproducing our race."

The boy seemed to think it over. "So… what happens when a human drinks from the Chalice?" he felt a momentary stab of panic, "My Mom isn't in any danger, is she?"

Washu decided to allay the boy's fears. "No need to worry about that, young man." She said with a reassuring smile, "Tsunami's blessing could not harm a human, but it could invigorate a non-functional reproductive system for the purposes of producing a human child capable of wielding Jurai's power, and receptive to my power as the Goddess Washu."

Tenchi, Aieka, and Ryoko stared between the two red-heads.

"The gems are the physical manifestation of my divine power," Washu explained, "They were designed to allow my daughter, Ryoko, to use my power in combat, and it would seem that, with the affinity granted by the Chalice, and the Proximity of the gems throughout gestation, you absorbed the ability to use my power as well."

"I get it!" Tenchi suddenly exclaimed, "So that's how he beat Ryoko! If he can use both your power and Tsunami's, then it explains everything!"

"It would, Tenchi," Washu replied, "If he had activated or used it at all. My readings show the power is dormant. It has yet to be activated by any form of training. It is, however, strengthening his body and mind somewhat and allowing for a massive increase in his chi."

"You mean he beat me without that power?" cried Ryoko.

"Seems that way." Washu replied, "He is completely untrained in the use of the Power. That does, however leave us with a peculiar set of circumstances."

"Like what?" Ranma asked.

"Well, if you were to start developing that power on your own, without the underlying training to go with it, it could destroy the entire world." Washu replied, "So you will need to be trained by Katsuhito and myself so that does not happen."

Since Ranma was a male, Washu did not feel the need to mention that if he were female, the Chalice's fertility power might still be in effect.

"So you guys will train me to not blow up the world on accident." Ranma said, "No big. When do we start?"

Katsuhito smiled. "We can start as soon as you are ready. Ryoko, call Ryo-Oki. Ranma, would you like a ride back home?"

The living ship descended, calling out with its trademark, "Miah!"

Ranma cringed. "No thanks." He said, "That think sounds like a…"

He cut off suddenly, eyes widening.

"WORLD SHAKING!"

The boy leapt to Sasami, driving both of them to the ground, while the others scattered as the blast from Sailor Uranus flew through the space they had occupied a moment before.

As they all struggled to recover, the blue-clad Sailor Neptune charged and unleashed her own attack at the two that lay prone. "DEEP SUBMERGE!" The ball of water met with Tenchi's Light-Hawk wings, dissipating on impact.

Washu's computer made a warning sound, indicating several high energy forms inbound.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

10 minutes left – On the Rooftops of Nerima

Happosai grinned maniacally, as he bounced along. "You were right!" he called back to his companion, who was struggling to keep up, "I can sense them ahead. Magic and Miniskirts! SWEETO!"

Razor pushed herself harder to keep up with the old man. She would not let Kunma down.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

10 minutes left – Elsewhere on the Rooftops of Nerima

Shampoo, Akane, and Ukyo, dashed along the rooftops searching for any sign of their fiancé. Having put aside their differences for the moment, they moved with the unified purpose of preventing Ranma's terrible fate at the hands of whatever evil man intended to do this to him.

Sensing a build-up of Ki some distance from them, they redirected themselves toward it. They would not let Ranma down.

10 minutes left – On the Rooftops of Juuban

Sailors Moon, Neo-Moon, Mars, Mercury, Venus, and Jupiter Ran along the rooftops followed closely by an impressed Ryoga. It was not just everyone who could run on rooftops, after all. He found himself more and more focused on the Raven Haired Senshi. She had nearly killed him, and yet, she had forgiven him for his curse. He could not help but feel drawn to her.

The Senshi, of course, were focused on other thoughts at the moment. Setsuna had betrayed them, betrayed the entire world. She had taken and was going to take actions that put the entire planet in danger. Actions taken in _their_ name, for _their_ future. This made it their problem. Setsuna had to be stopped. They would not let the World down.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

10 minutes left – In the Vacant Lot

Katsuhito glared at Pluto. "What is the meaning of this, Senshi of Pluto?" The old Priest demanded, "We had an agreement!"

Pluto looked at the man with obvious distain. "The agreement was that you could remain on our planet as long as you kept the Space Pirate Ryoko from wreaking havoc on Earth. From what I saw earlier, Yosho, that is no longer the case." She said with a smirk, "As the Princess of the Planet Pluto, Guardian of Time, and Leader of the Outer Senshi, in the name of the Moon Kingdom of the Silver Millennium, and the Future Kingdom of Crystal Tokyo, I demand that you, and all those of your family, leave this planet at once, and never return."

Aieka stepped forward, fixing Pluto with an angry glare. "How dare you!" she demanded. "I have you know that my brother Yosho owns the land his shine is on, so you can't make him go anywhere!"

Ryoko moved to back her up. "Yeah, and Tenchi was born here, so you can't force him to leave!" she said.

Pluto matched their glares levelly, but as she was about to respond, a cry rang out.

"C-C-C-CAAAAT!" Ranma cried, ducking behind the blue haired child.

Dianna cocked her head slightly, having not expected the clearly powerful fighter to react to her attempt to get a closer look. She looked at the cowering pigtailed boy closer. "Hey…" The grey Mau said, "you look just like the boy who led the resistance! Pluto! I think this is the Bad Guy Chibi-Usa and I was sent back in time to stop!"

"TALKING CAAAAT!!!" Cried Ranma, retreating away from the feline.

Pluto's eyes narrowed. "So." She said in a cold voice, "You are the bastard that destroys our future." She leveled her Time Staff at the pigtailed martial artist. "DEAD SC-"

And then something completely unexpected happened.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

9 minutes left – Still in the Vacant Lot

"SWEETO!" cried Happosai as he dropped into the lot, followed by Razor. He landed atop Pluto's Time Staff with a twisted grin on his face. "Hello, Pu-chan!" he said, "Did you miss me?"

"What?!" Pluto cried as the built-up energy of her attack discharged into the ground, throwing her and the wrinkled gnome across the lot.

The Senshi of Time landed and rolled to her feet in a fluid motion, just barely managing to bring her staff up again as the deranged old pervert leapt at her again. "YOU!" she said, recognizing him at last. "This is all your doing, and I am going to see to it that you never use my power to interfere with Crystal Tokyo ever again!"

As the two of them began to fight, back and forth on the far side of the lot, Neptune and Uranus decided that the Eldest Senshi needed their help, but found themselves blocked and by a pretty girl with Orange hair, brandishing a pair of Chinese Swords.

Razor glared at the pair of Senshi. "Where you think you go?" she demanded. "Stupid Skirt-girls have to deal with Razor!"

Uranus pulled her Space Sword and cast a glance at her lover. "Neptune, go help Pluto." She told her, "I will handle this."

Even as this was said, Katsuhito recognized Pluto's assailant. "That is that demon from years ago!" he said, igniting his sword once more.

Tenchi placed one hand on his grandfather's shoulder. "Grandpa, I know you feel the need to go and fight that…" he said, making a face as he tried to figure out what Happosai was, "Whatever he is… but we have a fairly decent chance to escape while they are distracted."

Katsuhito wanted nothing more at that moment then to charge over and assist the Time Guardian with her current foe, but he noticed Ranma's panicked flight from the cat, now it its third lap around the group, and the presence of the girls.

He closed his eyes for a moment and then made a decision. "Tenchi, take Ranma and the girls and get out of here." He said. "I am going to finish something I started years ago."

With that he turned and charged for the end of the field where Pluto and the bald and wrinkled gnome, leaving Tenchi and the rest of his entourage to grab Ranma and begin leading him away from the battle.

Unfortunately, they did not get very far.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

8 minutes left – Still in the Vacant Lot

"Stop right there!" Akane, Ukyo, and Shampoo declared in unison as they dropped down in front of the group that was fleeing from the battle with their partially incapacitated fiancée. Naturally, they had selected the male leader of the group as most probably the offender, father of this "Kunma".

"We won't let you take Ranma!" Akane declared, pulling he mallet and slamming it headlong into the boy's face, then leaping off after him to engage him further.

Ryoko and Aieka, seeing their lover beset by the girl's brutal attack, moved to help him, only to find themselves suddenly blocked as well. Shampoo and Ukyo, Bon-bori and combat spatula ready, charged the powerful aliens and drove them both back through the walls of nearby buildings, then leapt to follow, leaving Sasami and Washu staring after them.

As the Two Goddess girls looked back at Ranma, they realized that Dianna had managed to get in front of them. "I won't let you destroy my home!" the cat said, charging the boy and forcing him to flee, back into the lot as the battle raged on.

Washu and Sasami winced and looked at the one other person on the field that was not actively fighting or fleeing. Saturn looked back at them, and then approached them. "I don't like fighting people." She said simply. "They just bring me along for scare factor, and no one is paying any attention to me, so I am going to wait over here with you guys, ok?" The goddesses nodded dumbly, and decided that perhaps the girl was not as dangerous as they had feared.

Meanwhile midway across the lot, Neptune found that aiding Pluto would be far more difficult then she thought. The woman battling against herself and Uranus proved herself to be a veritable wall of blades, constantly placing something sharp between the Ocean Senshi and her Time bending ally, even while defending against Uranus. It was almost as if the orange-haired girl was buying time for something.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

7 minutes left – Still in the Lot

Tenchi tried to tell the girl that he wasn't trying to do… whatever it was she was accusing him of… to Ranma, but she simply refused to listen to him as she lashed out at him with the Mallet again. He was impressed by the short haired girl's raw power as she literally hammered on his sword and his armor. The huge mallet delivered one ringing blow after another, each with more than enough force to shatter a normal man's arm.

Unfortunately for Akane, Tenchi was not normal. He began calling upon his years of sword training, deflecting her mallet and redirecting the energy so that it would not even faze him anymore.

As he did so, the girl seemed to get more and more frustrated and began to glow red with anger, swinging the mallet harder and more wildly, even to the point where the deflected attacks shattered the ground they struck in huge bursts of flying debris.

It was the impact of one of these rocks on his armor that caused Tenchi to realize the amount of Destructive force that this girl was capable of. He decided that he had no choice but to take her out of this fight, before she hurt someone.

Meanwhile, Ryoko had her hands full. The purple haired Amazon was a lot more powerful then she had first expected and had the raw speed to use the interior of the now deserted apartment against her. Walls, tables, chairs, even couch cushions; all served to reduce the Former Space Pirate's mobility and allow the lavender haired Amazon to close and inflict punishment directly.

On the other side, Aieka was not doing any better. The interior of the Apartment she had crashed into was not conducive to her logs and force fields, so she was forced to rely on hand-to-hand and Juraiian magic to combat the chef, who was considerably more capable in close quarters.

In the middle of the battlefield, Uranus and Neptune were pushing Razor to her very limit. Uranus had realized that the orange haired girl was struggling to split her focus between fighting her and preventing her lover from passing. This was evidenced by the futile attempt she made at stopping the Priest from reaching Pluto, as the old man passed on the side opposite Neptune, forcing the Amazon to give up on stopping him or risk splitting too much of her attention from Uranus.

The blonde Tomboy of a Senshi moved away from her lover, and began to move toward Pluto herself. This forced Razor's considerable skills to the breaking point. If Usa did not arrive soon, she feared she would not be able to prevent Happosai from being defeated, and without the old Pervert, Ranma could not be… Packaged for Delivery to Kunma's father.

She gathered all her chi and forced herself to move faster, continuing to prevent both Senshi from advancing to assist their friend.

In the back end of the field, Pluto battled it out with the aged Master of Anything Goes. She was a little worried when Katsuhito arrived, thinking that the Juraiian Prince might side with her foe against her, but as he charged into the battle, he shot her a grin.

"Truce?" he asked, never for an instant taking his eyes off of the bald martial arts master.

Pluto merely nodded, before pushing on with the battle again, certain that with the two of them, the battle might be won easier.

Happosai grinned at the Priest. "Welcome to the Party, Masaki," he said, "Time for a rematch, is it?"

The Priest did not respond except lashing out with his sword which the Old man nimbly avoided, using the force of the swing to fling himself to Rebound off the wall of a nearby building and flip over Pluto's head to land behind her copping a quick feel as he did to.

All the while, Ranma fled, ducking in and out of various battles as he attempted to escape from Dianna, who kept up with him in spite of her small size and the accumulating debris.

Washu, Sasami and Hotaru stood idly off to one side, Washu using her computer to check for more inbound trouble, and Sasami and Saturn idly chatting about a cartoon they had seen lately.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

6 minutes left – Still in the Vacant Lot

The Battle turned against Shampoo as Ryoko finally decided that the confines of the Apartment they were battling in were a little too constraining for her to make full use of her abilities.

Flying straight up and phasing through the roof, the former Space Pirate managed to put some much needed space between herself and that beast of an Amazon. As she looked down on the building, waiting for her foe to emerge, she looked across the way to see that princess Aieka had apparently had the same idea.

The princess, too, had moved to escape the confines of the building and was now hovering about thirty feet above it flanked by Azaka and Kamidake, waiting for the Spatula girl to come out.

At the same time, elsewhere on the battle field, Tenchi began to attack, forcing Akane into a defensive stance, attempting to parry the expert strikes, easily on par with Kuno's attacks, except without the stupid Shakespearian monolog. She tried to mount a defense, but was still getting hit more then she liked with that sword of his.

In the middle of the field, Razor's exhaustion began to catch up with her, forcing her to turn her attention entirely on Uranus or risk being decapitated by the blonde Senshi's sword strikes or vacuum blades. Razor's Amazon sword style would serve her better one-on-one anyway.

Neptune entered into the fight with a "DEEP SUBMERGE!" forcing Happosai to jump over Katsuhito, causing the blast to hit the old priest in the back.

"Hey!" Katsuhito yelled, "I am on your side!"

Neptune looked embarrassed. "Sorry!" She said.

Happosai grinned happily. He was a master of the Dance of the Thousand Fists, and as such was able to defend himself far better the more foes he was facing. He quickly vaulted over Neptune's head, using the surprised Senshi as a shield, preventing Pluto from firing off her own magic attack.

Ranma continued to run, being chased around the three girls that were not fighting as they watched in amused silence. Suddenly Washu's computer beeped, announcing another contact inbound.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

5 Minutes Left – Still There.

Ryoko began shelling Shampoo with energy blasts the moment she poked her purple head out of the building, forcing the Amazon to dive for cover. Aieka had a dozen small logs waiting for Ukyo. Tenchi was diving Akane back, step by step, cut by cut, bleeding her, causing her strength and speed to drop, so he could finish her.

All of that changed in an instant. Aieka was first to realize that something was wrong. There was a soft snapping sound as a ribbon snaked its way around her ankle, followed by a sharp jerk, sending the Juraiian Princess flying at a high rate of speed into straight into the former Space Pirate, releasing a poof of powder and wrapping around her as well. Ryoko suddenly felt light headed, losing the ability to maintain flight, and the pair were easily pulled down atop Tenchi, leaving all three momentarily at the mercy of their foes.

Kodachi had arrived.

The other three girls looked at her askance for a moment, but the Gymnast simply smiled at them. "Don't act so surprised." She said. "I don't want to let Ranma-sama be raped in his female form any more then you do, and I believe we will need to work together to defeat this fool and his dogs."

"DOGS!" Ryoko and Aieka chorused, shaking off the effects of the paralysis powder. "HOW DARE YOU!"

Tenchi, on the other hand, stopped. "What do you mean, 'Female form'?" he asked.

Then it happened.

As if in response to Tenchi's question, one of Neptune's water-based projectiles struck the wall directly over Ranma's head, bursting and pouring down on the pigtailed martial artist, converting the martial artist into his female form in front of everyone present. The Senshi and Juraiians stared slack-jawed at the show of magic.

Kodachi looked at the man she had fallen for as he transformed into the woman she had thought she hated. "I… I had believed it, but to actually see it…" she said, then turned back toward Tenchi, Ryoko and Aieka. "I will NEVER let you touch MY Ranma-sama!"

Ryoko and Aieka were angered even further by this.

"Hey!" Ryoko grated, "Tenchi would never do anything like that!"

"Indeed," Aieka said with an indignant scowl, "Tenchi-sama would never debase himself in such a manner."

"Hey!" Ukyo demanded, "What do you mean 'debase'? Ranma is better than either of you tramps!" The other fiancées gave an emphatic nod, and readied their weapons.

Ryoko growled. "Who you calling a Tramp?" she demanded as a general melee broke out

Uranus and Neptune both stared a moment too long at the short and busty redhead and were swiftly reminded that they were in battle as Razor and Happosai capitalized on the distraction, with the Amazon leaving a deep gouge in Uranus's armor and the Pervert nearly relieving Neptune of her panties, nearly because Pluto and Katsuhito were not so easily distracted, and leapt to the Aqua-haired girl's aide, preventing the old man from escaping with his prize.

The old man rebounded and broke from the combat to charge toward Haruka who was again intent on her own foe, ready to be caught unawares.

On the edge of the battle field, Washu's fingers flew over her keyboard, confirming readings, while Sasami and Hotaru chattered about how strange it was that a boy could become a girl like that.

While all this was happening, Ranma, forgotten in the chaos, scrambled through the hole Shampoo had used to exit the apartment and disappeared from sight, followed by the grey cat.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

4 minutes left – Still in the Vacant Lot.

"HOLD IT RIGHT THERE!" The cry announced the arrival of the last group of players in this drama.

Pluto was not sure whether to be happy or concerned at the arrival of the Inner Senshi. She had no delusions as to what the Princess would think of her intent to remove the Juraiians from the Planet, and she certainly did not like the look of the hooded figure that had arrived with them.

Uranus and Neptune were glad that the Inner Senshi had arrived to support them. These foes were far stronger then they had expected, and they had not even really challenged the Juraiians yet. Six additional girls would certainly improve the odds. Wait… six?

Happosai and Razor immediately regrouped to one side, this being what they had been waiting for.

The melee between Ranma's fiancées and the Juraiians came to a halt as Ryoko, Aieka and Tenchi steeled themselves for an even harder battle and Ukyo, Shampoo, Akane and Kodachi all went a bit starry-eyed to be face to face with Juuban's infamous Magical Girl Heroes. Ryoga stood atop one of the nearby buildings, his eyes scanning the lot.

Sailor Moon stepped forward, flanked by her Senshi in standard Honor Guard formation. Pluto smiled at her princess, but her smile faltered as she saw the anger in Moon's eyes. "P-princess…"

Sailor Moon's eyes flashed. "Setsuna Meioh, you stand accused of Treason: Treason against me, Treason against Mankind, and Treason against everything we stand for!" she said in a cold tone. "You are to drop your Senshi transformation and turn over your transformation pen to us until such time that the accusations against you are sufficiently disputed."

Uranus looked outraged. "WHAT!?" she demanded, "You can't strip Pluto of her powers! She is needed to set up Crystal Tokyo!"

Pluto placed one hand on the other girl's shoulder. "I will handle this, Haruka." She said simply, before turning back to the Princess. "On what grounds, may I ask, am I accused?"

Moon firmed her footing, refusing to defer to the woman's calm and controlled demeanor. "You are accused of plotting to allow a catastrophic event which will kill billions of people." She said. "You are further charged with abusing your power, as Sailor Pluto, to drive off potential allies in order to twist the future into your own version of the best possible outcome."

Pluto glared at the blonde, challengingly. "May I ask who it is who brings these charges against me?" she asked.

The hooded figure stepped forward, pushing her hood back and revealing the pink hair underneath. "I am the one bringing these charges against you." Usa said.

This revelation left all of the Outers speechless. "Ch-Chibi-Usa…" Pluto said, as surprised by the future princess's appearance as anyone there, "This cannot be. You are dead…"

"Rumors of my demise have been greatly exaggerated." The girl said standoffishly. "Now are you going to give up, or are we going to have to take drastic action?"

A sudden thought seemed to dawn on the Senshi of time. "I see now." She said. "Clearly you have been corrupted by the evil powers of those who are trying to destroy our future of Crystal Tokyo."

Uranus suddenly nodded. "Like when she was Black Lady, under the control of the Death Phantom!" she speculated, then looked to Pluto. "What do we do? We can't take them all on."

Pluto smiled viciously. "Saturn, we need you!" she called.

All eyes turned to the youngest Senshi.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

3 minutes left – In the Vacant Lot

Sailor Saturn looked back and forth between the group that had served as her family since the defeat of the Deathbusters and the group that included the princess she was sworn to, as well as her best friend. As she looked from one group to the other, she was unsure how to proceed.

Behind her, Sasami stepped up close. "I have always found that if you look into your heart, you can find the truth." She said quietly.

Saturn thought for a moment, and then closed her eyes.

The Silence was an odd sort of thing. In and of itself, it was a profoundly negative energy sitting within her body. All things being in balance, Hotaru's body compensated by generating an abundance of positive energy to counterbalance it. This gave the girl her ability to heal others, but it also gave her a strong sense of whether or not someone was being affected by a negative force, including possession, mind-control, and even simple coercion. Hotaru had especially trained and developed this ability, since it was able to let her know if someone was under control of a creature such as Mistress Nine.

She could sense no such coercion in her friend. Chibi-Usa was definitely not being controlled. Neither was Sailor Moon. This could mean only one thing. Pluto was wrong. "I am sorry, Pluto." She said, "I sense not evil behind them. They are not being controlled."

With that, Saturn took up a position next to Usa behind Sailor Moon, much to the chagrin of her Guardians.

Moreover, the Juraiians, too, had stepped into position opposite the Outer Senshi, leaving only the four fiancées on the sidelines.

"Give up, Pluto." Usa said, "You will not bring about Crystal Tokyo, and you will not be allowed to erase my boyfriend from existence!"

Suddenly Ukyo's head popped up. "Boyfriend?" she said, her eyes widening, "She must mean Kunma! They aim to force Ranma into the bed of some guy! She will be raped!"

The Juraiians blanched at this, separating themselves from the Senshi. "We cannot condone that." Katsuhito stated, to the emphatic nods of Ryoko and Aieka. "If this 'Kunma's' existence depends on the boy giving that much of himself, then let him come and ask the boy himself."

"I think there is something more important to worry about at this point." said a new voice.

Everyone turned to see the old crone that the Nerimites recognized as Cologne. The Amazon Elder balanced on her cane, apart from the group. "For example," she said with a wry grin, "Where is Ranma right now?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

2 Minutes Left – High Above the Lot

Kunma looked down on the events, categorizing all the combatants with the eye of a Strategic Genius. He watched as, time and again, the battle lines melted and reformed in the Chaos below. Feeling a shift in power, he could not help but think back on his mother's words from long ago.

"It is always a good idea to plan ahead," Ranma had said, "taking into account every contingency in order to come out in the best way possible. In the Chaos of battle, however, even the best laid plans are often ruined by something that no one could have anticipated. At such times a Leader is faced with two options: to fall back, regroup and rebuild the plans to try again, or…"

"Or," Kunma said aloud, "to nut up, jump in, and wing it like a Saotome."

With that, Kunma jumped.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

2 Minutes Left – In the Lot

Everything froze as a terrible sound suddenly rang out from the Apartment building Ranma had vanished into.

"MMMRRROOOOOOWWWRRRRR!!!"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

A. N. With all of the Retreading I had to do in the beginning of this chapter I hope that shifting the POV made it entertaining. Now all the parties are in place, and the final countdown to the salvation or destruction of Kunma has begun. I will be working on Finishing this Fic next chapter. Constructive criticism always appreciated.


	10. Chapter 10

Son of Chaos

By Skye Silverwing

Disclaimer: No. I still don't own any of it.

Chapter 10: Preparations

2.5 minutes left – In a ruined apartment.

Ranma was scared. She vaulted over the kitchen table to attempt to escape her tormentor, kicking the table over as she went.

Dianna was not to be deterred, however, dodging the falling table and jumping over it herself to resume the chase.

Ranma was quick to realize that it had been a mistake to come in here. Most of the other entrances were destroyed in the earlier combat, ensuring that the only escape route would force her to pass that furry little beast. Not wanting that, Ranma retreated further into the apartment, climbing the stairs to the second story. She leapt over the railing at the top of the stairs, dashing into a nearby closet to hide the moment the cat was out of sight, and hiding behind the clothes hung there, cursing whoever had destroyed the door.

Dianna reached the top of the stairs and, having lost sight of her quarry, slowed down, using her feline senses to search for the frightened redhead. Listening carefully, she was able to pick up the sound of the girl breathing and realized that she was hiding in the closet.

Crouching low, the Gray Mau began to advance on her prey, slinking closer and closer until at last she pounced. She landed on the girl's leg, sinking her claws into her thigh.

The resulting cry was not at all what Dianna expected.

The terrified and pained scream suddenly shifted, dropping into an angry yowl as the girl's mannerisms suddenly changed from those of a scared human to those of an angry feline.

Dianna had just enough time for the threat to register before she was suddenly flung violently against the far wall, dropping down limply onto the stairs. The last thing she saw before the Darkness claimed her was the feral human charging past her and out of the building.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

2 minutes left – In the Vacant Lot

Everyone whirled to stare in shock at the building from which the horrible yowl had come. Of all of them, only those deeply familiar with Ranma knew what was coming.

"Blast!" Cologne shouts, "The fool cat has activated Ranma's Neko-ken!"

"Neko-what?" Ryoko asked, with the rest of the Juraiians echoing the sentiment.

Sailor Pluto's eyes widened. "Neko-ken!?" she exclaimed, "She is a victim of the Neko-ken!?"

She took the defensive stances of the martial artists and another angry yowl as her answer. Then she paled as she remembered who had been the last group to antagonize the kitty. "GIRLS!" She shouted. "We have got to get out of here, NOW!"

Sailor Moon stepped forward, glaring at Pluto. "No!" she said, failing to realize the gravity of the situation. "We came here to stop you from making enemies of the Juraiians, and we are not going to leave them to fight alone!"

Suddenly, the side of the building exploded outward, and a very feral looking red-head burst out. Her eyes scanned the potential threats, passing them up one by one until they came upon the group of fuku clad girls that it recalled as being the enemy. Then with a feral yowl, the insane martial artist charged at the girls claws bared.

Realizing that the others were in danger, Uranus leapt in the way of the redhead, bringing her Space Sword to bear to fend her off and allow the others time to react.

The clash was intense, as ki-borne claws met with the magic energy sword. The force of the blow hurls the startled Senshi of Uranus back several meters. She only had a moment to recover before the cat-girl was on her again, lashing out with claws that rent the concrete asunder like a hot knife through butter. Uranus parried the attacks desperately, defending against the claws that quickly enough, proved capable of shredding her fuku armor like tissue paper. It was all she could do to keep the bestial woman from sinking the claws into her vital organs. She struggled on, hoping that something would happen to save her from certain death.

Relief came with a catch.

"DEEP SUBMERGE!"

Uranus nearly cried when she heard her lover call out her attack, and saw the large ball of water shoot through the space that the cat had been a moment before, striking her head on. In a way, the water soothed her, cooling the burning wounds and momentarily drowning out the panicked cry of Neptune as the enemy turned its attention on her. Though her wounds dragged at her, attempting to pull her into the abyss of unconsciousness, Uranus could not let her lover fight that thing. Neptune had only a mirror to defend herself with.

Fortunately, the other Senshi had broken out of their surprise to come to Neptune's aide.

"LOVE ME CHAIN!" Venus called, generating a chain that seemed to be made out of hearts of pure energy, and attempted to ensnare the feral youth.

Ranma sensed the attack coming, snagging the chain with her claw. With a quick jerk of her paw, she pulled the blonde girl off her feet and pitched her into the girl who had thrown the water at her.

"FLAME SNIPER!"

"SPARKLING WIDE PRESSURE!"

Sailors Mars and Jupiter both launched their attacks, Mars forming an arrow of flame and shooting it and Jupiter creating a pressure blast of pure electricity.

The cat-girl performed a lazy back-flip, clipping the attacks with her claws and deflecting them, causing the Senshi to hit each other. She landed on the balls of her feet and looked around for the next attack.

"SHABON SPRAY!"

Sailor Mercury used her power to shroud the field in a thick fog. The cat strained its eyes in an attempt to see through the fog, searching for any sign of danger.

"DEAD SCREAM!"

"SILENCE GLAIVE SURPRISE!"

The explosion resulting from Pluto's and Saturn's attacks blew away the fog. The following silence was short-lived, however, as the feline martial artist, catapulted by the blast, dropped down directly on the surprised Sailor Saturn, knocking her glaive to the ground.

Usa could not let her friend die. "Hotaru!" she cried, focusing her ki as Kunma had taught her. "MOKO TAKABISHA!"

The blast of confidence fueled ki struck the cat-girl solidly in the face, sending her tumbling off of the terrified Senshi of Silence.

Turning angrily toward the Future Moon Princess who, until now, had not been considered a threat, Neko-Ranma began a slow advance.

Seeing her Spear Sister in danger, Razor brandished her sword and moved between Usa and the cat, though she might as well have been wielding a stick.

Neko Ranma charged at the two girls.

"FALLING STAR KICK!"

The impact was jarring as a blur from atop the nearby high-rise building impacted directly on top of the insane martial artist.

As all of the players looked on, the dust began to clear, revealing the red-haired Neko-Ranma facing off against a brash young warrior who looked a lot like her male form.

"Kunma!" Usa and Razor announced, glad that their knight in shining armor had come to their rescue.

With an irate look in his eye, Kunma glared at his mother. "I will not let you harm anyone else, Mom!" he said, a cold look in his eye. "Especially not those I care about!"

Neko-Ranma examined this new threat, deciding that it could prove more difficult than any other so far. She licked her lips in anticipation:

This was going to be fun.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

One Month After the End of Earth – Somewhere Outside of Time

Setsuna stared helplessly at the image in the Gates as the last hope for the Universe faced off against a fighter caught up in one of the most hazardous martial arts techniques known to the world. She turned to Washu, a concerned look on her face. "Can't you do that a little faster, Washu?" she begged, "If Ranma dies before we get the Timelines separated, or Kunma dies at all, our hopes are for naught!"

Washu slid out from under the time gates far enough to direct a glare at the woman. "I'm working as fast as I can!" she said, annoyed. "I am bending the Laws of Physics into a pretzel just trying to wrap my head around the THEORY of what we are trying to do here, and your complaining is only slowing me down, so do us all a favor and SHUT THE HELL UP!"

As Washu slid back under the highly advanced piece of technology, Setsuna turned to Happosai. "How can you possibly be so calm?" she demanded, "Everything depends on us getting these timelines apart before something bad happens, and you are just sitting there, cool as a rock."

The diminutive man looked at her and chuckled. "I am calm, because I know both of those kids." He said. "If anyone can beat Ranma in a Neko state, it is Kunma. Furthermore, if anyone can beat the odds, chance and time itself, well, each of them individually would stand a decent chance, but together there is no way they will lose. Besides, it isn't like Ranma can do anything that will surprise…" he trailed off as something happened in image of the past.

"Uh-Oh." He said. "That… isn't good."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1.5 minutes left – The Vacant Lot in Nerima

The Battle raged between the two greatest Masters the Anything Goes School had ever known. Kunma countered Ranma's Neko-ken state by mixing his own martial arts with the power from Jurai. He moved, dodging, parrying and striking with all the skill his mother had taught him, as well as generating Light Hawk wings to bolster his defense.

Neko-Ranma used all the speed and agility afforded by the combination of her female form and her cat-like mind to attempt to get around the boy's defense, but still found herself battering uselessly at it, failing to breach it at all. She continued to lash out, ki claws digging into the energy force field, searching for a weak point, all the while getting hammered by the variations and combinations of her other self's signature moves.

Kunma watched his mother as she tried to break his defense, unleashing various attacks and watching the cat try to repel them, and all the while looking for a means to take her down quickly without hurting her too badly. All he needed was an opening. Then he had an idea.

"Bakusai Tenketsu!" he shouted, plunging a single finger into the ground beneath his feet. The resulting explosion threw a large amount of rocks and dust into the air. Neko-Ranma flinched back, trying to fend off the worst of the shrapnel. Kunma pushed his advantage, forming his Light Hawk Wings into a sword in order to increase his reach. He used the cloud of dust as cover and vaulted over Ranma's head, focusing his ki through the sword and aiming for a pressure point on her back.

The sound of the strike rang out across the entire lot, and no one moved, everyone anxiously waiting to see what had happened. As the dust began to settle, it revealed a very shocked look on Kunma's face, and a blue field of energy separating the tip of his blade from its intended target. A moment later, the energy coalesced into a blast of force, sending the young warrior rocketing backward and embedding him in the masonry of a nearby wall.

Tenchi gasped. "Grandpa, that's…"

Katsuhito nodded, igniting his sword again. "The Light Hawk Wings." He said, finishing Tenchi's thought.

As everyone looked on, the Light Hawk Wings traveled back along Ranma's body, altering her form and becoming armor as it did. The shift was drastic, giving the girl a greater feline appearance, like a large armored cat, with huge, bladed claws, a reinforced tail, and cloth streamers running down its back. It scanned the remaining foes, and let out a vicious roar.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

1 minute left – In the warzone that was previously a vacant lot

The Goddesses had not been idle. Washu and Tsunami had spent their time gathering their powers. They reached the greatest level they could without shedding their mortal forms and ascending to a higher form, something that would be nearly impossible to come back from. Still, they feared that it might not be enough.

The appearance of Leo-Ranma made it even worse. The flow of Jurai's Power into the beast was massive and completely out of control. The atmosphere was beginning to destabilize as the girl-lion monster roared its challenge.

The two Goddesses move quickly to either side of the creature, unleashing a containment beam to hold it in place. "NOW!" Washu shouted. "Hit it with everything you've got! Don't hold back, or that thing could destroy the entire world!"

Most of the Senshi, having recovered somewhat, stepped up.

"MARS FLAME SNIPER!"

"VENUS LOVE AND BEAUTY SHOCK!"

"JUPITER OAK EVOLUTION!"

"MERCURY AQUA RAPSODY!"

"DEEP SUBMERGE!

"SPACE SWORD BLASTER!"

"CHRONOS TYPHOON!"

"SILENCE GLAIVE SURPRISE!"

The Juraiian group also began attacking. Tenchi and Katsuhito fired bolts of Juraiian power, Ryoko fired blasts of her own energy, Aieka summoned small logs that struck with lightning, and Ryo-Ohki, who had been hovering over the battlefield for most of the fight, opened fire.

Of Ranma's fiancées, only Akane was foolish enough to charge forward to attack, getting herself struck by one of Aieka's bolts of lightning and knocked out.

The other fiancées, as well as Happosai and Cologne did not make a move, determining that there was little they could do in the face of such terrible power.

As if to prove the point, Leo-Ranma suddenly leapt in the air, dragging both startled Goddesses off their feet and still leaping high enough to slash the startled Ryo-Ohki out of the air. Ryoko charged at Ranma in rage, only to meet the ground very hard.

The Goddesses, finding themselves suddenly in the line of fire, threw up a defensive barrier, which resulted in all of the Senshi's attacks exploding on impact, sending all of the fuku clad girls to the ground, even as Leo-Ranma landed between the three Juraiian Royals, whirling quickly and taking them all out with its tail.

Looking around quickly, Leo-Ranma spotted the two girls it had been fighting before, standing behind the two extremely aged and skilled ones it had fought at different times in the past. Uttering a growl began to advance on them, only to be cut off by the Pig in Human clothing.

Ryoga took up a defensive stance. "I won't let you win, Saotome!" He announced. "That girl has my cure, and I won't let anyone take that away from me! Now, PREPARE TO DIE!"

Cologne and Happosai watched as Ranma batted Ryoga away like a cat toy and continued to advance on them. They took on combat stances and waited for the fight that would surely end their long lives.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Half of a minute left – In the same place

"STOP!"

All eyes turned to Sailor Moon as she made her way across the broken ground toward the cat on shaky legs, with her eyes full of tears. "Please… Just stop." She said, "Stop hurting everyone."

The creature unleashed a menacing growl as she stepped up to it, but it did not attack.

Sailor Moon dropped to her knees. "Please…" she said, letting the tears brought by the pain of her friends and allies fall, "Please stop."

Ranma stopped. The armor dissolved as the rage she had felt was replaced by desire to comfort the crying girl. Neko-Ranma began to purr and rubbed herself against Moon, then settled in on the girl's lap.

Happosai chuckled. "Well I'll be…" he said. "I suppose we should have seen that coming."

Cologne nodded. "Indeed." She said, "Ranma always did have a soft spot for a crying girl."

Usa and Razor looked at each other, trying to figure out how to get Ranma where she needed to be without drawing her wrath again.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Fifteen seconds left – Still in the same place

Looking around at all of her injured friends, Sailor Moon produced her Silver Crystal.

"MOON CRYSTAL HEALING POWER!"

Everyone began to stir as their wounds were healed. Ranma let out a groan as she snapped out of the Neko-ken

Ten seconds left…

Akane Tendo pushed herself to her feet and looked around. Around her she saw many beautiful women doing the same. Then she saw her fiancé, lying in the lap of a gorgeous blonde in a miniskirt.

Seven seconds left…

Akane's mallet appeared in her hand. She began to run toward her offending fiancé and the offending blonde bimbo, ignoring the cries to stop from all those around her.

Five seconds…

Usa's heart leapt as she heard the cries to stop. She and Razor both turned to see the Kunma's infamous Aunt Akane charging toward Ranma and Sailor Moon, sure to put the girl right where she needed to be.

Four…

Ranma saw her angry fiancée charging at her with mallet raised. She realized that the girl whose lap she was on was in danger, so she rolled, intending to take the shot fully herself, hoping that someone could stop Akane before she could get the second shot off.

Three…

Kodachi attempted one last minute attempt to stop the enraged Tendo, whipping out her ribbon, only to have it cut by Razor's thrown sword.

Two…

Reaching her target, Akane Swung her mallet, intending to send Ranma and the Bimbo into orbit. She had completely missed the fact that Ranma had moved to ensure that Sailor Moon would not take the hit at all, and that a number of people were trying to stop her.

One…

The Mallet Stopped.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Time runs out – In the warzone that was once a vacant lot

Akane stared up at Kunma, the future son of Ranma. Suddenly everything came rushing back to her. She realized she was about to Mallet Sailor Moon of all people.

Usa ran up. "No!" she screamed, tears streaming down her face, "Kunma! Why did you stop her? She would have sent Ranma to your father!"

Kunma flinched as a wave of pain ran through his system, blurring his vision. "My mother always taught me that it is the duty of a martial artist to protect not only the weak, but also those who cannot protect themselves." He said. "Even the strong can't protect themselves all the time, and in our time, my mother was unconscious when Tatewaki Kuno took her to his bed."

Everyone who knew Kuno winced at this revelation. Akane's Mallet fell from her hands as it occurred to her that she had almost done. Ranma was trying to digest what she was hearing.

Razor, merely a step behind Usa, was crying as well. "But without Ranma Saotome's rape, you will never be born!" she said, "You will have never existed."

Kunma cringed as another wave of pain shot through him. "I could not let it happen, this time." He said. "Ranma Saotome deserves to live without that happening."

Ranma suddenly understood. "You… you would sacrifice yourself for me?" She asked, looking into the eyes of the boy who would have been her son. "Why?"

Kunma doubled over in pain as another wave surged through him. He looked up at his mother and smiled. "Because I love you, Mom…" He said softly, "and you taught me to protect those I love, no matter what the cost."

Another surge sent the boy from the future onto his back, with a howl of pain.

Pluto suddenly realized something was wrong. "This does not make any sense." She said, "If the boy is being erased, then he should be fading, but it is as if a part of him is as real as it ever was. This can't be purely the magic of the Time Gates. The Time Gates are absolute."

Happosai looked at the Guardian of Time. "Kunma's Amazon girlfriend told me that the boy had used the Nanban mirror to come back, catching the girl on the way." He said. "They are much different magics, but with similar properties, so maybe they fused somehow."

Pluto's eyes widened. "That would create two timelines layered on top of each other, the Time Gate's being the stronger." She said, working the temporal physics of it all out as she went along. "A death prevented would merely reappear in the future and memories would shift, accounting for the presence of the one who died without changing the events. A death caused however, would only mostly effect the counterpart in the future." Her eyes widened. "It would rip his body and soul in two and the larger piece would cease to exist. The weaker piece would not be enough to sustain the body, so the body would die."

"No…" Ukyo said in dismay, and the others echoed her sentiment.

The boy from the Future screamed in agony, and then passed out.

Suddenly Sailor Moon stepped up. "I have an idea!" she said, turning to Ranma, "I need your permission, since it will affect you most. I have no time to explain, though."

Ranma thought for a second, and then nodded. "That kid just saved me from getting raped by Kuno." She said, "If there is anything I can do to return the favor, I will do it."

Sailor Moon nodded and transformed into Princess Serenity. She held up the Ginzuishou, and called out in a clear voice, "MOON CRYSTAL POWER!"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the doomed future – Somewhere outside of time

Sailor Pluto's fingers flew along a keyboard, trying desperately to prevent the paradox that threatened to destroy the Universe even before the Graviton Flare could. Kunma was integral to the timeline, as without him the Revolution against Crystal Tokyo could not have succeeded, and no Kunma could go into the past to stop his mother from being raped and conceiving him, which would cause there to be a Kunma, resulting in the entire process repeating itself over again, until the fabric of time ripped itself apart at the seams.

Happosai and Washu helped where they could, but it wasn't much. They all knew that the Universe would end, unless…

Suddenly everything stabilized. Pluto checked her scanners in confusion and then looked into the Past to see what had happened.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Back in the Past – In the devastated vacant lot

"MOON CRYSTAL POWER!" Princess Serenity held up her crystal, shining its light over the prone form of Kunma Saotome. "A soul capable of this much selflessness should not be brought low by such circumstances." She said, turning her wish to the crystal itself. "Please, Ginzuishou, give me the power to save this noble soul!"

The light shining over the boy coalesced, encasing him in a ball of light. As the light intensified, it obscured his form, converting it into energy. Then the ball of light focused itself smaller, and flew across the intervening space between it and Ranma Saotome, striking the currently female aqua-transsexual in the stomach with a bright flash.

Silence reigned for a few moments before a surge of temporal energy burst forth, covering everything in a wave of radiance. It surged through the space Kunma had been laying in a moment before. A moment later, it passed, leaving a very confused Kunma sitting in its wake.

Kunma was not the only confused one, but questions had to wait, as Princess Serenity crumpled to the ground.

There was a sudden blur of motion as Serenity's Tuxedo-clad boyfriend suddenly sprang out of nowhere and caught her as she sank to the ground and shifted back into her Sailor Moon form.

The Senshi were split between voicing their concern for their princess and their disdain for Tuxedo Kamen making his entrance now, when he had obviously been around for the whole battle, and they could have used his assistance earlier.

The Masked man blushed sheepishly, but covered for it by fussing over his fallen love.

Sailor Pluto looked from the princess to the newly recovered boy from the future. "What did she do?" she asked, clearly as confused as anyone else.

Moon opened her eyes and looked wearily at the Green-haired Senshi. "He needed to be born or he was going to die." She said softly, "So I reincarnated him."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the doomed future – Somewhere outside of time

Washu wracked her brain trying to understand what the past version of Princess Serenity had just said. "Wait, wait, wait…" She said, "She reincarnated Kunma as HIMSELF?! How the Hell does that work?"

Pluto pondered it for a moment before tapping her fist on her hand. "I think I get it." She said. "The Nanban Mirror generates a Universe that does not affect the future it comes from. This universe is fused to the real past through the intersections of the two magics, creating a kind of dual Kunma. When Kunma's conception was stopped, the more real Kunma from the affected past began to fade away, leaving the less real Nanban Mirror version of Kunma, which was not strong enough on its own to survive in the fused universe. It was dying, so the Princess, in one of her oh-so-rare moments of naive genius, used the magic of the Ginzuishou to Reincarnate the dying half of the boy to restore the stronger half."

Washu rubbed her head. "Ouch." She said, "Time travel sure does a number on you if you think about too much…"

Pluto simply nodded, turning her attention back on the image in the Gates. A few moments later, her eyes widened and a slow smile crept onto her face. "Well, I'll be damned." She said, "That could solve all our problems, right there."

Happosai, who had been watching silently the whole time, laughed out loud. "Well," he said, "I suppose that's one way to do it…"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

Back in the Past – In the vacant lot

"You… you REINCARNATED HIM!?!?" Sailor Pluto sputtered, "But-but that isn't possible! A person can't be reincarnated without a sufficient magical base!"

Sailor Moon gave the Senshi of Pluto a withering look. "I know that." She said. "I used the Ginzuishou to give him a magical base. I don't think it would have worked without the magic that was already affecting him though."

"What magic?" Pluto asked, confused.

It was at that moment that the water main feeding the surrounding apartments, damaged by the battle, gave out, drenching everyone on the battlefield in cold water, and reducing all of those with a cold-based Jusenkyo curse to their cursed forms.

All eyes turned to Kunma, who was now female and hovering several inches off the ground. A wand appeared in her hand and the words came unbidden to her lips:

"TERRA PLANET POWER, MAKE UP!"

Kunma spun through a shiny, multicolored transformation and in a few moments found herself staring down at her own brown-with-green-trim-and-blue-bows fuku. All of those present turned to look at Sailor Moon with wide eyes.

The Senshi leader grinned happily. "I had to organize the magic a bit so it wouldn't be prevented just because she was a boy at the time," she said, "and I tied her female side to the Earth, since Sailor Terra died when Beryl went bad."

Ami produced her computer and scanned the newly formed Senshi. Then she blinked and scanned her again. Then she checked her sensors and scanned her again. "Oh, my." She said, "Sailor Moon formed the latent magic of Jusenkyo into a Star Seed, Allowing the transformation into a Senshi to Trigger and reverse the curse, as well as water."

Pluto was completely gob smacked. She could not believe that the Princess had such intuitive knowledge of how the Ginzuishou worked.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the future – At the Gates

"I got it!" Washu announced.

Pluto smiled. "You are a genius, Washu." She said, "Now we can send the Luna-P back to explain what we need."

Happosai sighed. "I suppose it is necessary," he said, "but I wish we didn't have to interrupt their happy time with such bad news."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the Past – In the Vacant lot

Ranma looked at Sailor Moon. "Does this mean that I am pregnant with Kunma?"

Sailor Moon nodded and the newly minted Sailor Terra looked at her mother with a concerned look on her face.

Ranma smiled at her. "Good. I can't imagine having a better son." She said, getting a sudden mischievous gleam in her eye. "Or should I say, daughter?"

Sailor Terra blinked and then dropped her transformation into her ordinary female form and put her hands on her hips in a feminine manner. "Moooooom!" She said irately, "I am a guy!"

Ranma laughed. "Indeed you are." She said, "And a man-among-men, with your own fiancée troubles. Like Mother, like daughter." She directed a meaningful glance to where Usa and Razor were talking animatedly with Saturn, with Venus and Jupiter listening as well.

Kunma paled slightly as Cologne approached the pair of Aqua-transsexuals. "I may have the answer to that, Ranma Saotome. As Matriarch of Joketsuzoku, I, Ku Lon, declare you, a Jusenkyo victim cursed into female form and then made to be with child, to be a member of our Tribe." She said formally, "I also declare that until such time as your male form is restored, all of those who would lay claim to you as a mate shall have their claims deferred by order of the tribe until such time as you are once again able to face them in your proper form, or face the wrath of the tribe."

Shampoo and the others began to protest, but they were silenced by the focused gaze of the Amazon Elder. "Foolish children!" she snapped, "The girl is with child! She will not be able to regain her true form until she bares it. What value is pursuing the relationship in the meantime? If what the children from the future have told us is accurate, the World itself will be in terrible danger long before then! Your time is better spent preparing!"

Sailor Pluto stiffened and glanced at her Princess who, having heard the Elder's words, turned to glare at her.

Moon's eyes held a level of contempt that she reserved for those who lead their enemies. "That reminds me, Pluto." She said, her voice taking on a dangerous edge. "You Betrayed us all in pursuit of a world that betrayed the vary ideals we have worked so hard to protect! You plotted to wipe out ninety percent of the world's population, and for what? To make it easier for us to dominate those that remained? Do you really think that little of us? Of me?"

Pluto hung her head. "I…" she stammered, "I… didn't think…"

Moon's glare bored into the older woman as she stepped slowly closer to her, backing her into the wall. "You didn't think what?" she demanded sternly, "Didn't think we would care? Didn't think we would find out? Didn't think it would matter? WHAT?"

Pluto dissolved into tears. "I didn't think there was any other way!" she cried, "I thought we would have to do it on our own, and I knew we couldn't! We aren't strong enough!"

Kunma stepped up. "So, what, you just ignore all the allies and powers you could have called on to help you?" She said with a contemptuous glare. "I bet Washu could have whipped up a device that could have blasted that comet away at any time, if you had just asked."

The Alien Genus crossed her arms and nodded.

Pluto sank to her knees. "I couldn't do it." She said, "We had to be the strongest. We had to be the best. The undisputed rulers of the planet. Otherwise…"

"Otherwise we risked having to fight to keep the power, until some group of Rebels got lucky and killed the Queen, Triggering the Saturn contingency."

Everyone turned to see a small, cat-faced ball-thing hovering in mid-air projecting a holographic image of the Future Sailor Pluto.

The Youngest Senshi suddenly looked worried. "'Saturn Contingency?'" she asked.

The hologram, while programmed and recorded, anticipated the question. "The Saturn Contingency is a failsafe against the Ginzuishou falling into the hands of the Moon Kingdom's enemies in the event of the Queen's death." The holographic Pluto said, "If the Queen dies and no heir is detected by the Gates, Sailor Saturn is forced to call upon the Silence to destroy the world that the Queen was on, to prevent the Ginzuishou from falling into the wrong hands. I am so sorry, Chibi-Usa. I should have protected her better. I should have protected the whole world better."

Usa suddenly sank to her knees tears streaking her eyes. "Mom… and the others… are gone…?" she sobbed.

Kunma sank down beside the girl, unable to speak at all through her own grief and the two of them gripped each other for support as they wept. Ranma, Razor, and Sailor Moon knelt beside them, offering them what support they could.

After what seemed like a long time, Sailor Moon addressed the hologram again. "If the world of the Future has been destroyed, how you survive?" she asked in an accusatory tone. "You should have been there when it happened."

The Image of Pluto looked sheepish. "I was saved." She said, "By an unexpected force."

Suddenly, Happosai hopped into the picture. "Hello, kids!" he said, waving ecstatically, "I pulled Pluto to the Gates at the last second, saving us both!"

Ranma shook her head. "Stubborn old man." She said, a fond smile playing across her face. "Never did know when to lay down and die."

The hologram interpreted the words and the image of the old man chuckled. "I don't die easy." He said, "And neither did the rest of the Rebellion. We fought hard to the last, even when Serenities magic turned our old friends against us in terrible ways."

Sailor Moon bowed her head in shame at her future self's actions.

"In the End, when the Queen fell, and all hope was lost, one bright star of hope stood between us and the Silence." The Hologram continued, "And I must say: I had never been so proud to call Ranma my heir. Sadly, all she managed to do was buy a few of us the time we needed to escape. Ranma died proudly, smirking in the face of a desperate battle. You would have been proud of her, Kunma."

The image of Pluto returned to the fore. "That is not the reason we sent this message back, though." She said. "It seems that in my foolish quest to bring about crystal Tokyo, I failed to consider the magic that was the underpinning for the Moon Kingdom in the Silver Millennium."

The present Pluto's eyes widened. "What?!" she asked in shock.

The future Pluto seemed to regard her past self for a moment before answering. "The Magic of the Silver Millennium is based upon Planetary Mana." She lectured, "Life forms produce the Mana, and feed it into the Planetary Mana Pool. These feed the Powers of the Senshi, as well as a greater, Solar Mana Pool. The Solar Mana Pool then dispenses the energy to the various Terra-forming Spells throughout the System, allowing living things to live on any planets that would have otherwise been unsuitable for habitation."

"As you know, the planetary Terra-forming spells were mostly eliminated at the fall of the Silver Millennium. Little did we know that there was one such spell, whose purpose was to maintain the Sol system's Star, and preventing it from causing a disaster of catastrophic proportions."

"In my foolishness, after all of the other planets fell, I sought to destroy most of life on Earth, failing to take into account what such a loss would do to the Mana Pool. Earth is completely gone now, and the rest of the Planets are incapable of maintaining the Solar Containment on their own. In other words, the Entire Universe is about to be destroyed, past, present and future."

Future Happosai moved to the front once more. "Not all hope is lost though, kids." He said, "We spoke with the Juraiians and they agreed to help switch the magic to use their energy. Only problem is that in order to do that, we need someone capable of using both Jurai's Power and Mana-Based magic."

Kunma chuckled. "So, in other words, you need me to go back to your future and save the world. Again." She said with a sigh. "I gather I need to go as soon as possible?"

The Holographic Letch nodded.

Kunma turned to all everyone assembled there and smiled. "Well, folks, I guess I am off to save the world, then." She said.

Kunma flinched as Usa suddenly poured ki-heated water over her head. "Not so fast, lover-boy!" the Pinkette said, "Hey, Cologne, I declare my friend Hotaru to be my Spear-Sister, Okay?"

Cologne chuckled and nodded.

Usa and Razor both looked at Saturn and nodded. She nodded back. Kunma blinked, suddenly aware of a sinking feeling in his stomach as Saturn began to walk toward him. He could not figure out why until his danger sense went off and his reflexes took over, allowing him to bend over backwards as the young girl thrust her glaive through the space where his head had been a moment before.

The rest of the Senshi were shocked and confused. "Saturn, what are you doing?" Sailor Moon asked in confusion.

Ukyo whispered something to Ranma, Akane, and Kodachi. Akane and Kodachi both shook their heads, but Ranma nodded. Money was set out.

Cologne chuckled and Shampoo, in cat form sat beside her and Mousse in his cage.

Ryoga sat next to Usa in his pig form, watching the fight, though stealing glances at Sailor Mars, who was occasionally glancing back at him.

The Aliens just watched, unaware of what to think.

Kunma sidestepped a downward slash from Saturn's glaive, and gave ground to avoid a thrust. He was getting a feeling like he had done this before, but that was something he needed to think about when the most lethal force in the Universe quit trying to kill him. He bent over backwards again to avoid another wide slash, and brought up his foot, kicking the weapon out of the girl's hands and catching it as it spun through the air. He swung it around and struck the young Senshi across the face with the butt end of the weapon, then swept her feet, dropping her on the ground. He pointed the blade at her throat.

The Young girl held her hands up in surrender and de-transformed, causing the weapon to disappear, and revealing herself to be a girl no older than 13 at the eldest. She quickly stood and glanced at Usa once more before throwing her arms around his neck and kissing him on the lips. "Wo ai ni, Wo da Airen." She said in a shaky voice, casting a quick glance at Usa to make sure she had said it right.

The Assembled people exploded into a chorus of confusion, applause, and cries of dismay as Ranma and Ukyo collected on the betting pool, and the Inner Senshi held back Hotaru's adoptive parents as they struggled to visit horrible pain on the "Pedophile seducing our little girl".

Cologne, Happosai, Neko-Shampoo and the Duck applauded the action, and the Aliens looked amongst themselves, curious.

Kunma was a bit surprised. "Another fiancée?" he asked.

Ranma chuckled. "Oh, come on, son," She said, "Even I saw THAT one coming."

Kunma sighed, and wrapped an arm around his newest fiancée and walked over to the other two. "Usa-chan, Razor-chan, you two seem to be enjoying having a new rival a little too much." He said.

The two grinning girls glanced at each other and their grins grew larger. Then they tackled the other pair, dropping all four of them in a heap on the ground.

Razor glomped them all. "No rivals." She said, "Friends. Friends share, not fight."

Kunma smiled, looked at the three girls and then vanished, re-appearing a moment later next to Cologne. "Matriarch, please take care of this for me." He said, handing the old Amazon the Nan-Ban Mirror. "Make sure they are ready as possible to attack the Doombringer on my return."

Kunma held up the Key he had pick-pocketed from Usa. "Now is as good a time as any, Pluto!" he said, "Let's get this over with so I can get back to my wives!"

A beam of light shot down from above and drew Kunma upward into the sky as Usa and Razor both fired curses at him in their native languages interspersed with demands that he return alive or else.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the Future – At the Gates

The misty air swirled and Pluto, Washu, and Happosai stepped back as the Raven-haired boy appeared in a flash of light.

He smiled and bowed respectfully to his Master. "Master Happosai, it is good to see you alive and well." He said, turning to the alien Genius. "Washu, how have you been? I haven't seen you in years, at least not in this timeline." He gave the erstwhile Goddess a warm embrace, which she returned happily.

Washu looked up at the tall boy. "I would have come to see you more often," she said, "but the Senshi would have treated it as an act of war, and you know how popular they were in the Galactic Republic and the Union of Allied Planets. It would have come back on Tenchi and the others on Jurai."

The boy nodded in understanding, then turned to regard the third person present. He locked eyes with Pluto for a moment before she broke eye contact and looked away.

In that moment he vanished and reappeared inches from her and drove a fist into her gut. She doubled over in pain as the air rushed from her lungs and gasped as he followed up with a vicious uppercut that drove her back but allowed her to keep her feet.

Washu started to move forward to stop it, but Happosai placed a hand on her leg to stop her. A slight shake of his head told her to let it happen.

What followed was almost as brutal as it was therapeutic. Kunma vented all of his pain and rage over Pluto's crimes, and the deaths of his family, and the destruction of his home. He dished out his vengeance on this woman who had caused him so much pain, pummeling her until he wasn't mad anymore.

Pluto was finally receiving the punishment she felt she deserved. She gave herself over to the pain and made no attempt to defend herself as the first step in her own penance for her crimes. She was almost sad when he stopped short of killing her, but then, she thought, there was always time for that after they saved the universe.

The two of them sat on the floor, looking at each other, breathing hard and smiling, Pluto's face bloodied and covered in bruises.

Washu sighed, not really understanding what had happened. "If you two are finished, we need to get going on this." She said, in a stern voice. "We only have about two weeks before this universe, and every one it is connected to gets wiped out. With the programming and such, we are down to the wire as it is."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the Past, shortly after Kunma Left – In the Vacant Lot

Kunma's three fiancées consoled each other, each trying not to act like they believed that Kunma had just leapt into mortal danger.

Nearby, a grey cat limped out of the ruins of the nearby apartment complex, looking at the trio in confusion. "Princess?" Dianna asked cautiously.

Usa turned to see her cat favoring her left rear leg and looking over all worse for wear. "Dianna!" she called, rushing to tend to her hurt kitty, "What happened to you?"

Several of the girls gathered around the girl and the Mau, intent on helping.

Usa glanced up from her cat when she noticed that some of the girls had the color draining from their faces staring behind her. Glancing over, she saw Ranma standing there.

"What's up, guys?" she asked, before spotting the Mau and flinching back slightly. A moment later, though, her own eyes widened. "I- I'm not scared." She whispered, a faint trace of awe in her voice, "I am not afraid of that cat. I AM NOT AFRAID OF THE CAT!!!"

Sailor Moon smiled as she watched the elated boy-turned girl as she rushed over to her feline cursed fiancée and scooped her up, hugged her and scratched her behind the ears. It was a scene that made her feel warm inside; the kind of thing that was worth protecting.

Sailor Moon turned to look at Washu. "Pardon me, Washu-san, is it?" she asked, "I heard Kunma say that you could build a device to destroy the Doombringer. Can you?"

The Red-haired Genius grinned at the Moon Princess. "Of course!" she said brightly, "I am Washu, the most brilliant Genius in the entire Universe! I can easily put together a weapon that will blast that Asteroid into Space Dust!"

Pluto scoffed. "Yeah, right." She said. "You won't be getting anywhere near that Asteroid." She shifted back a little bit as Sailors Uranus and Neptune, who were acting as her guards, took hold of her arms to prevent her from approaching the Princess.

Moon glared at her formerly trusted advisor. "What is that supposed to mean, Pluto?" she demanded.

The Green-haired Senshi stared sedately back at her. "Well, I wouldn't be much of a time-controlling bitch if I were to leave the key to my perfect future undefended, would I?" she said, "I had over fifteen thousand years to prepare, as well as tons of Silver Millennium technology at my disposal. Did you think I would not plan for the contingency of some hot-shot alien hero or fleet deciding that that asteroid needs to be blown up?"

Sailor Moon's eyes hardened. Pluto looked at her and sighed. "I was trying to defend our future." She said. "But given certain new evidence, I know now that it was a mistake. Unfortunately, I set up the defenses in such a manner that even I can't stop the thing anymore."

Washu's eyes held genuine interest now. "What kind of defenses are we talking about here?" she asked.

Pluto sighed once more. "Simple." She said, "What did you think I did with all of the enemies that were just too powerful for the girls to handle?"

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the future, a week after Kunma's arrival – At the Gates

Washu finished the last few tweaks to the ancient magical device. "Okay." She said, holding up what appeared to be some form of headgear. "This is the interface system you will be using to access the energy reservoir in the Sun. It should allow for direct access to the Program physically."

Kunma cocked his head at the alien genius. "Physically?" he asked, "How can that be? Programs are merely data."

Washu grinned at him. "Ah, but this headgear allows you to transfer your consciousness into the machine as a program." She said, "Then your mind will interpret the other programs as physical beings."

Kunma blinked. "Other Programs?" he asked, "Like what?"

Pluto stood. "Like the System's defensive programs." She said, "You should go in expecting to fight."

Washu nodded. "Fortunately, your powers will be transferred in whole by your mind, so you will be able to fight there as well as you do here." She said. "If you encounter any hostile programs, you can avoid them or attack until they are disabled. Try not to delete them out right, though. We don't want to leave the system defenseless against other Hackers in the future."

Kunma nodded. "So I just put the headset on?" he asked.

Happosai chuckled. "First a form change." He said, "While Jurai's Power and your ki are always active, you need to summon the Mana to you."

Kunma sighed. Being in Senshi form felt wrong. He had spent his entire life fighting the Sailor Senshi, though he had to admit, they weren't that bad before they became Tyrants.

He pulled out his Henshin Wand and sighed. "TERRA PLANET POWER, MAKE-UP!"

One transformation sequence later, Sailor Terra stood there, her body quivering slightly as the mana surged into her, filling her with its power.

Then she blinked. "Hey, Pluto," she asked, "If Earth is gone, how do I still have Senshi powers, since they were derived from Earth?"

Pluto smiled. "True, you are not receiving power from the Earth of this time." She said, "That is one of the reasons that we are doing this from the Time Gates. The active connection to the other Timeline is allowing you to draw from that Earth."

Terra nodded and placed the apparatus on her head. "Okay." She said. "Let's do this."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the Past Timeline One Day After Kunma Left – In a Room below the Nekohatten

It was a War council.

On one side of the large, square table sat Usagi Tsukino, flanked by Rei Hino and Minako Aino. Behind them, Setsuna Meioh knelt, bound, with Haruka Tenoh, Michiru Kaioh, and Makoto Kino surrounding her.

On the other side of the table, Tenchi Masaki sat, flanked by Katsuhito and Sasami. Behind them, Ryoko and Aieka knelt, along with Ryo-Ohki in humanoid form, and Mihoshi, who had been called in for this meeting.

On the third side of the Table, Ranma Saotome was flanked by Happosai and Cologne. This arrangement was decided after a fight broke out between Ranma's four would-be fiancées over who would sit by his side. Shampoo, Ukyo, Akane, and Kodachi ended up kneeling behind Genma and Nodoka, with Soun and his other two daughters behind them. Behind them all, Ryoga leaned against the wall, his bandanna pulled low over one eye, which somehow negated his direction problem.

On the final side of the table, Usa, Razor and Hotaru sat, leaving enough space so that Washu, Ami Mizuno, and Mousse could set up Washu's holographic AV system and connect it to Ami's Mercury computer. Mousse was helping move stuff.

As Ami finished the program, Washu nodded to Cologne, who tapped on the table with her staff. "Alright, everyone," the Old Crone said, "We are gathered here because of a dire threat to ourselves and our entire world."

Everyone was already aware of the events that had transpired the previous day, so they all remained silent. The Aged Amazon motioned for Washu to speak. "Okay," the alien genius said, "Even as we speak, an interstellar object of massive proportions, codenamed 'Doombringer' is traveling on a course that is designed to bring it to a position just outside Earth's orbit in just under six months. This object is of sufficient size and mass as to pull the Earth into a higher orbit as it passes by, resulting in a catastrophic climate shift referred to as the 'Great Freeze'. As the collected defenders of this world, it is our duty to prevent this. Ami?"

Washu gestured to Ami to take over. The girl hit a button on her computer. In front of everyone appeared a 3D image of the rogue Asteroid. "This is an image of the Doombringer based on information provided by Ms. Meioh." She said, speaking the name with no small amount of contempt. "It appears to be nearly twenty thousand kilometers wide, giving it several times the mass of the Earth. It is currently surrounded by a barrier that Pluto describes as a dual-directional time-dilation effect, preventing anything from passing into or out of it. It also serves as a nearly impregnable force field preventing us from simply blasting the Asteroid."

Ami pressed a button, and a number of points appeared on the surface of the Holographic Asteroid. "These are emitter complexes." She explained, "Their purpose is to maintain the Dilation field while also maintaining M-Class conditions on the surface. Pluto thought she could kill two birds with one stone, as it were, by using time dilation field to trap the villains that we were not strong enough to defeat, or simply were not around to fight, and letting them fight over the Emitters, defending them jealously against any threat."

Ranma gave a low whistle. "So I gather that in order to take out these emitter things, we will need to fight our way through the baddies guarding them." She said. "And get away before the conditions in the area get unlivable."

Ami nodded.

Ranma cast a glance around the room. "Then I guess we had best get training." She said.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the Future – In a Virtual World

Sailor Terra flitted quickly from cover to cover, keeping her energy low and difficult to detect as she moved toward the large castle that was apparently her target. She had met with no resistance as of yet, and in fact, had seen no one at all.

She figured this place was likely patterned off of the Old Moon Kingdom, which meant her target likely rested somewhere within Queen Serenity's palace, though she had no idea what to expect on her way there.

As she crossed an eerily quiet intersection, a shadow flitted along on the corner of her vision. Turning, she spotted a black Mao, Luna, apparently, walking towards her.

The cat stopped ten feet from the Earth Senshi. "Who are you," she asked, "And why do you seek my Lady's court?"

Terra cocked her head slightly at this, but responded. "I am Sailor Terra," she said, "and I seek the Queen for reasons of dire urgency to the entire Universe."

The moon cat's eyes narrowed. "Sailor Terra does not exist." She said, "Sailor Terra is a traitor. You seek to destroy us. I cannot allow that."

With that, the Mau began to shift, growing in size and ferocity. It gained coiled muscle and larger teeth and claws. It issued a low, dangerous growl, completing the transformation into some kind of black tiger, or perhaps a panther.

Another growl from behind her was all the warning Terra had as the Luna's white counterpart, Artemis, stalked from the shadows behind her.

Glancing from one big cat to the other, Terra idly wondered if this was what her mother saw when she looked at these animals. Not that she was scared.

She dropped into a defensive stance and watched as the beasts advanced. She really didn't have time for this. As if on an unseen signal, both cats lunged forward, lashing out with their claws, apparently hoping to slash her to pieces.

Terra leapt in the air, causing the two tigers to slam into one another, then directed a double hammer-kick on the backs of their heads, stunning them, followed by a spinning handstand kick that sent both cats flying back against the walls of nearby buildings, which proceeded to collapse, burying the Moon Cats in rubble.

Terra grinned. If that was all they had, she would be in the palace in no-

Danger sense and quick reflexes were the only reason the Earth Senshi was not rent asunder. She leapt over the claws of a green haired beast and a red haired beast. Apparently, there were more than two Mau in the Moon Kingdom.

"MOKO TAKABISHA NO TERRA!"

The Energy blast carried with it all of the confidence of humanity. The Beasts were hurled back and sunk deep into the walls of the surrounding buildings and were buried in a hail of stones as the bulk of the buildings crumbled.

Deciding not to get caught off guard again, Terra turned and trotted toward the palace at a quick pace. She evaded a few more of the "Super Mau" on her way, switching to roof hopping until she came down in the plaza in front of the palace. Again, she was struck by the lack of living things in the area.

As she touched down, she saw what appeared to be Sailor Mercury tending a small garden full of crystalline plants. The blue-haired Princess of Mercury looked up at her and cocked her head. "You should not be here." She said, "The Princess is sleeping and you could wake her."

There was a flash of light and Mercury's usual blue fuku was replaced by crystalline battle armor. In her hand, she held a crystalline harp. She glared at Terra with icy blue eyes. "You cannot be allowed to disturb the Princess!" she declared, "MERCURY ICE RAPSODY!"

Terra threw herself behind a low wall as Mercury ran her fingers over the strings of her harp, generating a massive block of ice, which then shattered, sending thousands of bits of icy shrapnel, which impaled everything in its range. The ice bits began to glow ominously, sending the Earth Senshi diving for a different bit of cover as they exploded.

Breaking cover, Sailor Terra leapt at Mercury, attacking her hand-to-hand. The Blue-Haired Senshi stumbled backward, trying to defend herself from her lightning-fast punches and kicks, even using her Harp as a shield.

Terra called on her Anti-weapon training grabbing the Harp and performing a wrist lock that forced the girl to lose her grip on the magic item. As the Harp came free in Terra's hand, there was another flash, and the Mercurian Princess was gone.

Confused, Terra scanned the surrounding area. Seeing no sign of Mercury, she shrugged and tucked the Harp into her stuff space pocket and headed toward the Palace once more.

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

In the Past – At the War Council Under Nekohatten

"We have only three months to prepare if this plan is to be successful." Washu was saying, "During that time, I will be working on building the Particle Beam Cannon that will deal the final blow."

Ranma nodded. "And Happosai, Cologne and I will be working on training the Senshi in the basics of the Art so they don't suck so much in hand-to-hand." She said, ignoring the angry "Hey!" from Makoto, "Some of them have a little skill, but they need a lot of work."

Katsuhito nodded. "And Tenchi and I will be training Ranma to control Jurai's Power Better," he said, "While Aieka and Sasami return to Jurai and gather a fleet of ships to assist with the destruction of anything that tries to flee the surface once the shield is down."

Usagi nodded, looking determined. "And Setsuna here," she said, jerking her thumb at the Senshi of time, "Will get us in, so we can fix the problem she created."

The bound Senshi sighed. "You really think you can pull this off?" she asked, not really looking like she believed it. "Do you truly think it will be that easy?"

Ranma smiled coldly at her. "No," she said, "But nothing that is would be worth it."

.o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o. .o0o.

A.N.

Hey, you guys remember how I said that this was going to be the last chapter? I was wrong. Fact is, the "Big battle" in this chapter felt terribly anticlimactic to me, what with Sailor Dias Ex Machina fixing everything. As such, I decided that just letting them blow the asteroid up was way too easy. Expect at least a decent four-way running battle on the Doombringer, if not an epic quest to bring it down.

I do need some help, though. I am considering what villains to place on Doombringer, and how many. I need ideas. Anything outside the existing presented Cannon. To show more or less what I am thinking, I am already considering Rita and Zed from Mighty Morphing Power Rangers, Daimakaicho Hild (and entourage) from Ah! My Goddess, the Goa'uld Ra from StarGate, the Daleks from Dr Who, and Apocalypse from X-men.

Any Villain with sufficient power, military might, etc, to hold one of the mentioned emitters against their rivals or capable of hatching a scheme to take one from one of the others are welcome ideas.

Keep in mind, if I get enough ideas, this will graduate into "Epic Quest" Mode, in which certain heroic characters that were overpowered threats to the Senshi also found themselves pitched onto that rock at some point. For example, if Pluto needed to remove Hild, she probably needed to do the same to Belldany and her sisters; if Ra is present, there is a likelihood of dissenters amongst his Jaffa; and if the Daleks rule a chunk of this rock, it increases the odds of a certain Time Lord being there as well.

I want any ideas you all are willing to give me, especially for things like the Politics of a world with such a high concentration of Villains. Who would be allies, who would hate each other by nature, who would secure one emitter and rule the area around it, who would be constantly trying to capture other emitters, who would have captured and be holding the most emitters, who would be plotting to capture emitters at the right moments, and most importantly, how does this affect our heroes, their potential allies, and their quest?

As always, I love constructive criticism.


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